There is a new federal law, the TAKE IT DOWN Act. (https://takeitdown.ftc.gov/) It says, in plain terms, that if someone puts an intimate picture of you online without your permission — a real one, or a fake one made by AI — the website must take it down within 48 hours of your request; the one who posted it may wind up in federal prison. It became law in May 2025 and has started to bite. It also speaks to a new reality: you can no longer trust your own eyes and ears. A photograph used to be proof; a familiar voice, confirmation. The Act is cause for hope. But the vultures have already begun gathering around it . . .
Pictures nobody consented to
A 37-year-old man in Ohio made computer-generated explicit pictures of people who lived near him — of things that never happened — and posted more than 700 of them on a notorious abusive website. He sent one victim's fake video to her co-workers; he left threatening voicemails. In April of this year, he pleaded guilty— the first conviction in the country under the new law — and was sentenced to 15 years in prison on the combined charges against him.
That spring, federal prosecutors in Brooklyn charged two more men, aged 51 and 20, with making explicit (AI) deepfakes of about 140 named victims — private women and recent school graduates alongside a few celebrities — that had drawn nearly three million views. (Note that those are charges, not convictions; the men will have their day in court, but the message is plain: what used to be dismissed as an internet prank is now serious crime, carrying up to two years in prison when the victim is an adult; three, when the victim is a minor.)
The law does have teeth, for both the poster and the platform.
A second rip-off
This month, the Federal Trade Commission sued a company behind websites with names like BlackmailHelpline.com, accusing it of charging victims of blackmail thousands of dollars for "removal" help that reportedly did not stop the blackmailers or keep the pictures offline. The law requires the website, itself, to take the picture down within 48 hours--free of charge.
The Take It Down report itself costs nothing — you tell the platform; it has two days. If it fails, you report it to the FTC. In fact, there is some basis for the appeal of the “Blackmail help line” . . .a real case may require substantial follow-up. The picture may be on several websites, may reappear; the blackmailer may still be threatening. The person who posted it may deserve prosecution; the victim may deserve compensation under state law. That can well become work for someone who knows the system, someone up to speed on AI itself, both in how the fakes are made and how to hold the companies and people responsible.
Who ya gonna call?
So here is the whole point of this post, and the reason I keep at it on this blog. Before you pay anyone who pressures you to decide on the spot — before you pay a website to do what the law already requires free, call someone who can at least explain your options: a lawyer, for instance.
Most of us can't afford a lawyer on standby. That's the gap a legal subscription fills: for a modest monthly cost, about a dollar a day, you have a lawyer you can actually call — day or night in an emergency — who can work with you on managing the takedown process . . . or help with the financial disputes and legal actions if the worst has already happened. It's not just about litigation. It's about not facing it alone.
So when something strange does reach you — a picture you never posed for, a threat in your inbox — remember the great tag line from Ghostbusters: Who ya gonna call? Have a plan and a phone number (LegalShield, of course!) ready before you need one.
***
How this post was developed: The topic, the angle and final version are mine — I conceived of the TAKE IT DOWN topic and focus and extensively edited the text. My AI assistant (Muse) did background research, drafted an early version, recommended improvements in style and language and created the illustration. The law and the cases are drawn from available public sources — the FTC, the Justice Department, and court reporting. Any errors in how those or the overall perspective on this issue are presented are mine.
wracton@gmail.com
williamacton.legalshieldassociate.com
No comments:
Post a Comment