Revenge Porn Laws by State: 2026 Federal vs State Comparison

Every US state and the District of Columbia now has a non-consensual intimate imagery statute. The 2026 TAKE IT DOWN Act creates a federal floor, but state laws often go further on criminal penalties, civil remedies, and victim protections. Choosing the right legal path depends on the state, the perpetrator, and what outcome you want.

What the Federal Floor Does

47 U.S.C. § 223a creates:

A 48-hour removal obligation on any platform hosting non-consensual intimate imagery.
Statutory damages of up to $150,000 per violation against non-compliant platforms.
FTC enforcement under Section 5 of the FTC Act.
Coverage of synthetic and AI-generated content (digital forgeries).

What the federal Act does not do:

Criminally prosecute individual distributors. That is left to state law.
Provide civil damages directly to the victim against the distributor. State law again.
Set criminal penalties for the original posting. Federal law focuses on platform compliance.

State Categories

State laws fall into four broad categories based on penalty severity and victim protections.

Category 1: Felony States with Strong Civil Remedies

Illinois, California, Texas, Florida, New York, New Jersey, Washington, Oregon, Colorado, Massachusetts, Virginia, Michigan, Minnesota.

These states classify NCII distribution as a felony, allow private civil actions with statutory damages of $10,000 to $150,000 per image, and have specific statutes for synthetic content. Combining a state civil suit with federal Section 223a removal produces both monetary recovery and content removal.

Category 2: Misdemeanor States with Civil Remedies

Most remaining states. NCII distribution is a misdemeanor on first offense, escalating to felony on repeat offenses. Civil remedies are typically $1,000 to $25,000 per image plus attorney fees.

Category 3: States with Specific AI Deepfake Statutes

California (AB 602), Virginia, Texas, Minnesota, New York, Hawaii, Georgia, Illinois, South Dakota.

These states have separate criminal and civil provisions specifically for AI-generated intimate imagery, often with higher penalties than for real NCII because of the absence of any underlying consent.

Category 4: Limited States

A small number of states (primarily in the rural mountain west) have NCII statutes but with narrow scope, no civil remedy, or high evidentiary burdens. In these states, federal Section 223a is usually the more practical path.

When to Use State Law vs Federal Law

Use state law when:

You know who the distributor is and they live in the United States.
You want monetary damages, not just removal.
The state has a strong specific deepfake statute.
Local prosecutors have a track record of charging NCII cases.

Use federal Section 223a when:

You need fast removal across many platforms.
The distributor is anonymous or overseas.
The content is on platforms that have ignored state law cease and desist letters.
You want FTC enforcement leverage.

Use both when:

The state has a felony statute and the distributor is identified. Federal removal stops the bleeding while state criminal and civil actions hold the distributor accountable.

Statute of Limitations

State NCII civil statutes typically have a 4 to 7 year limitations period from discovery, not from posting. Federal Section 223a removal obligations have no time limit because each day the content remains hosted is a fresh violation.

The Practical Order of Operations

Federal Section 223a notice to every hosting platform, immediately.
State criminal complaint with local prosecutor, within the first week.
Civil suit under state law against an identified distributor, within statute.
FTC complaint for any non-compliant platform, when removal fails.

ScanErase handles step one within minutes and provides documentation packages that local attorneys use for steps two through four.

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