Report image-based abuse

If someone shares or threatens to share an intimate image or video of you, eSafety can help remove the content or stop the threats. If you’re being blackmailed, don’t pay or give them more – stop all contact with the blackmailer.

Image-based abuse is not your fault and you’re not alone. You can get help by reporting image-based abuse, including ‘revenge porn’ and ‘sextortion’. 

On this page:

• What you can report to eSafety
• Who can report image-based abuse?
• How eSafety can respond
• Steps to take
• Contacting the online platform or service yourself
• Reporting to the police
• If you’re not in Australia

The intimate image or video you are making the report about can show, or appear to show:

• you nude or partly naked – such as a naked selfie or a topless photo if you identify as female or non-binary
• your genitals, bottom or breasts – even if you have underwear on (this includes upskirt shots) 
• you during a private activity – such as undressing, using the toilet, showering, having a bath or getting sexual 
• you without clothing of religious or cultural significance, if you would normally wear it in public (such as a hijab or turban).

The image or video can be:

• real
• altered or faked to look like you. This includes intimate images that have been digitally altered like deepfakes.
• shared in a way that makes people think it’s you, even when it’s not (such as a nude of someone else tagged with your name). 

The image or video can be sent, posted or shared using:

• an online platform or service (such as a social media feed, online game or other app) 
• a website, such as an image board or porn site
• a direct message, text message, chat service, email or file transfer (such as AirDrop or Nearby Share).

You can make a report if:

• you are the person in the intimate image or video
• the person in the intimate image or video has asked you to make a report for them
• you are a parent or guardian of the person in the intimate image or video and they are a child under 16
• you are a parent or guardian of the person in the intimate image or video and they need help due to a cognitive, mental or physical issue.

Also:

• the person in the intimate image or video must ordinarily live in Australia OR 
• the person who sent, posted or shared the intimate image or video, or made the threat to share it, must ordinarily live in Australia.

Once you make an image-based abuse report, we will contact you (or the person you reported on behalf of) as soon as possible.

• We will check in and see how you are doing first, so we can make sure you have the emotional support you need.
• We will usually contact the online platform or service used to send, post or share the intimate image or video or to threaten you. Then we will work with them to get the content removed or stop the threats. This may include removal of the account the other person used.
• Sometimes we can also take action against the other person. For example, they may be fined or directed to do something specific to prevent them sharing your intimate image or video.

If police are involved, we may need to contact them to check that any evidence needed for your case has been preserved before we have the image or video removed.

Note: Due to the volume of image-based abuse complaints eSafety receives, we prioritise complaints that require the quickest compliance and enforcement action. Further information about how we prioritise image-based abuse complaints can be found in the image-based abuse regulatory guidance.

1. Collect evidence

The reporting form will ask you:

• what has happened
• where and when it happened
• what proof you have. 

Keep a record of:

• all contact from the person who shared or threatened to share the intimate content, including their username, account handle or platform ID
• where they contacted you – for example, their Snapchat username, Facebook or Instagram URL (web address) or the Skype name and ID they used
• when they contacted you, including dates and times
• any reports you made to the online platform or service or to police
• anything else that’s relevant.

Taking screenshots, photos or recordings of your device’s screen is a quick and easy way to collect evidence. But don’t save or share nudes or sexual images or videos of anyone under 18 or any other illegal or restricted content. 

Find out how to collect evidence, including how to take screenshots on a Mac, Windows PC, Apple devices or Android devices.

2. Report image-based abuse

Fill out the report form to make sure we have the most important information about your case right from the start. This allows us to assess your complaint quickly and decide if we can help remove the content or support you in any other way.

If you’re reporting on behalf of someone else, first make sure they have given you consent.

3. Stop further contact, tighten security and prevent sharing

• Stop all contact with the person who has shared the intimate images or videos or threatened you. 
• Use in-app functions or your device settings to ignore, hide or mute the other person’s posts or comments. After collecting evidence you can also block them, to take away their power to harass you.
• Update your privacy settings, to limit who can contact you.

The eSafety Guide has advice on key online safety functions for many online services, including social media, online games and other apps.

4. Get more help

What you’re going through is not easy. Even when it’s over, you may need more support.

• Try contacting an expert counselling and support service, especially if you’re feeling anxious or depressed. 
• Read our advice on how to manage the impacts of image-based abuse, including tips for taking care of your wellbeing.

Report now

You can read eSafety’s privacy policy and collection notification to find out how we handle your information.

We understand that contacting an online platform or service yourself to report abuse may be upsetting or difficult. You do not have to report image-based abuse to an online platform or service before making a report to eSafety.

If you are comfortable contacting online platforms or services yourself, we have advice to assist you in making a report. In some cases, reporting directly to the online platform or service can be the fastest way to have the content removed.

Finding contact details to report abuse

Most major social media services have terms of service that ban the sending, posting or sharing of intimate images or videos without consent. They usually have processes to report in-app and request the removal of intimate or harmful content – you can find direct links for many of them in The eSafety Guide.

Sometimes it can be tricky finding contact details to report abuse to websites. Some websites feature a ‘Contact us’, ‘Support’ or ‘Abuse’ button on the page or at the footer of the page. Other websites may include contact details for reporting abuse in their terms of service or on pages with details about compliance with the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA), a United States law aimed at preventing online copyright infringement.

If you can’t find contact details for an online platforms or service, you should make a report to eSafety.

Reporting abuse to an online platform or service

When reporting abuse to an online platform or service, you will typically be asked to provide details, such as your email address and the links to the images.

It’s important that you protect your personally identifiable information. We recommend that you create a new email address to make removal requests. Do not provide any details such as your home address, phone number or copies of identification documents in full when making a report. 

If a service attempts to blackmail you or demands payment for the removal of images, it is important that you don’t reply or attempt to negotiate.

We suggest writing something like this:

“Hi, my intimate images have been shared on your site without my consent.

This is against the law in Australia. I am requesting the images/videos  be removed along with any associated thumbnails.

The images are located at these URLs: [https://www.example.com/abc123]

I would appreciate prompt removal of the content and notification when this has been done.

Thank you.”

If you are contacting a website that has a DMCA contact address, you could consider letting them know that you’re the owner of the content copyright and that you don’t consent to the material being on the site.

If an online platform or service does not respond to your requests to remove material, you should make a report to eSafety.

Request removal of intimate images from search engine results

Search engines can also remove links to intimate images from their search results.

When a search engine removes links to the content, the photos or videos will not be removed from the websites where they are hosted. But removing links from search results makes it much more difficult for people to find the intimate images by using your name in an online search.

You can make a report to certain search engines to have your images removed from search results:

• Google
• Bing/Microsoft
• Yahoo!
• Yandex.

Visit our International resources page to find out where you can get support, depending on where you live. It may be a good idea to report the image-based abuse to your local police.