The movie Sex Tape comes out this week. The previews look dumb, but I want to see it to examine the story from a legal perspective.
I’ve done a fair amount of research and writing about cyber harassment and “revenge porn.” I’m generally an advocate of personal responsibility and people not acting like asses, but judging by the terms people search for and end up on my site, a lot of people don’t share my views.
Here is a sample of the terms people have searched for and ended up on my site just in the last ninety days. (I corrected the spelling errors unless they were too funny not to leave in.)
I get a lot of hits on my site when people search for terms like this:
- Can someone post your picture without permission
- Can I sue someone for posting pictures of me online
- If someone sends you a photo via phone can you post it online
- Is it illegal to take a picture of someone and post it on the internet
- Sex tape invasion of privacy
- Expectation of privacy in sex stores
- How to get a sex tape of you removed from a website?
I feel bad for these people:
- What if someone wants to post your explicit pictures
- Someone is threatening to put me on a porn site
- My daughter videotaped herself doing some sexual things and now someone is threatening to put it on the internet what now
- Someone posted nude pics of me, what type of lawyer do I need
- Girlfriend took illegal pictures and put them on Facebook
- If a site posts my porn video can I make them take it down
- My ex-husband has intimate pictures of me what can I do
- What is the legal steps you can take when someone is distributing a sex tape of you without your consent
- My ex-boyfriend has nude pics of me. Can I legally do anything to make him delete them?
- Can I get someone arrested for posting nude pictures of me online
- Can you get someone arrested for distributing a sex tape?
- Can you be classified as a sex offender for posting nudes on Facebook Arizona
These people kind of scare me because they either sound vindictive or clueless:
- Wapsites to post my nude pics
- Took photos of my ex naked while she was passed out
- Can I post pics of my ex online
- Can I post a naked pic on the internet without the consent of that person
- If a person uploads sex videos in prone sites how much money will he get
- Do you allow people to post nude pictures on your site I broke up with a guy
- If u put wife nude video with name on internet can u get in trouble
- Is giving out naked pictures of your ex- girlfriend breaking the law
- Can you send xrated pics to get back at someone
- Is it illegal to take a picture of someone and caption it with a degrading comment
These are just funny:
- Can you sue a person for taking a photo of your butt in public
- My ex sent me nude pics can I prosicute her
- What to do to keep ur man after he saw ur nude pics sent to an ex
- My boyfriend exposed my nude pictures. I will arrest him
- Can you take pictures of people having public sex?
- How to legally make fun of people on the internet
- Why do people post stupid things online
Anyone who’s a regular reader knows that I constantly say “Think before you post.” When it comes to taking explicit photos or videos with your significant other, don’t do it unless you can handle the responsibility and have enough integrity to keep your private life private.
If you feel you’ve been the victim of a cyber-crime, contact the police in your community. If you want to chat about other issues related to cyberharassment and revenge porn, feel free to connect with me on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, LinkedIn, or you can email me. You can also subscribe to the Carter Law Firm newsletter.
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21 responses to “Questions People Ask About the Law, Photos, Sex Tapes, and Revenge Porn”
A guy I was seeing for a short amount of time videotaped us having intercourse and & video of me in sexual acts he sent the video to my ex Can I have him arrested even though he might delete the videos?
You’d have to contact the police in your community to determine if what he did is a crime in your state.
I am a massage therapist and someone posted all my photos of my face and phone number in an escort add. When you click the add on, it goes to friend finder, a sex site. It tries to allure you to join to see x rated pictures of me, and my sexual reviews., which do not exist. They are using my photos and number to advertise. I had an add in the therapeutic section for massage service. This is very upsetting. There is no number to call to fix this. I live in Florida
Wow…that sounds like a distressing situation. I’m only licensed to practice law in Arizona and I can’t give advice through blog comments. You should contact an internet attorney in Florida for assistance. Best of luck to you!
[…] hope this law passes. Based on the number of questions I get about revenge porn, this is a problem that is not going away on its own. If it passes, I hope there will be campaigns […]
My situation is similar to one above. I’m just too embarrassed to contact my local police to ask. My husband and I filmed ourselves being intimate. Once we separated, he text the video to my mother. He has also threatened to send the video to our children’s friends parents. How can any of this be legal? I’m tired of living in fear. I live in Texas and I’ve tried to find laws on this but can’t. Hope you can help.
If you’re too embarrassed to go to the police, perhaps you’d be more comfortable starting with a domestic violence or women’s resource center. They may have information that could be helpful to you.
If someone post pictures of myself revealing my past and sexuality is that person can get in trouble.
They are not open or nude pictures is just him with and other gay man
These circumstances have to be assessed based on all the details of the situation and which laws apply. Posting photos may or may not be illegal depending on the gestalt of the situation.
Hi Ruth,
What are the Statutes of Limitations in AZ for a situation by an ex-husband who video taped his wife while in compromising positions, in the shower, bathroom, naked in bed, without the victims consent? We have audio confessions that he admitted doing it, and we also know, that he still has these videos, even though he’s remarried. We have copies of both the videos and the confession. It is our understanding that the limitations for filing against this individual is only 2 years in AZ for any civil matter. If that is true, what other means may we have? Is a criminal lawsuit the only other alternative? Thanks
This is likely a situation that needs to be reviewed by law enforcement to determine if a law has likely been violated and what the applicable statute of limitations is.
A male associate I’ve known for 20 years dated a few times and had been priviously intimate with posted nude photos that I sent him from my private collection as revenge because I confronted his girlfriend when he wanted another shot at taking things to the next level and hanging out . I live in New York State where there is no criminal law against this,but as a licensed professional this could hurt my future earning because he sent this to my last former job, now Iam in school on unemployment
Given your financial situation, you may want to talk to the police, legal aid, or a domestic violence resource center to talk about your options.
[…] Jay’s story made me think. Why do I have ads on my YouTube videos? I make little Question Of The Day videos where I respond to questions the people ask me via email or the weird stuff people Google and end up on my website. Some people ask me about some really messed up situations – both hilarious and cringe worthy. […]
A friend’s ex posted pictures and videos of her doing intimate stuff in facebook, and multiple porn sites. He lives in a different country than her. What can she do to get them taken down or to go after this perpetrator.
It can be hard to go after a person directly when they’re located in another country. It still may be worth contacting law enforcement or a lawyer to discuss your options.
I can’t give legal advice through the blog, but I can give you a few suggestions to pass along. I suspect these photos violate Facebook’s terms of service so reporting them could be enough to get them removed. In regards to the porn sites, your friend may want to review their terms of service to see if they have a way to report images for removal or at least a way to contact the company to inform them that they have images posted without permission. If any of these companies are located in the U.S., there may be a way to go after them for hosting these images – depending on the circumstances and the laws that apply to the situation. If your friend wants to explore these possibilities, she should hire a lawyer for a consultation.
I live in Colorado. My ex says he will send some nude photos and video I made him to mutual friends and my family. I told him that revenge porn is illegal in my state. But I still fear he may show other people. What if he shows them on his own device and they are his friends?
If he doesn’t actually send them and his friends won’t testify against him can I still press charges? And would I need more than hearsay?
If you think you’ve been the victim of a crime, call the police and let them investigate it. In some states, just threatening to show your nude images without consent can be illegal.
I posted about a hundred nude photos of myself and several videos of me doing an intimate sex act on a fetish website that is open to the public via free membership. I had a falling out with another member from a different state and he downloaded my videos and photos from the site and posted them on another porn site. Can I file criminal charges against him for posting those photos/videos as revenge porn since he violated my privacy?
You would need to check your state’s laws to see if your state has a revenge porn law, and what the limits are. There may be other ways to get the images and videos removed from this other side – I recommend you consult an internet/copyright lawyer.