CAVEAT:
This “How-To-Guide” can change as social media vendors update their reporting protocols. The below noted procedures were current at the time of publishing this guide in July 2024.
This “How-To-Guide” is designed to provide teens, and even adults, with information on how they can connect with a social network, where their intimate image/video (nude) was non-consensually posted, to initiate an official takedown request. If the intimate image/video is of a youth under the age of 18yrs, often it is easier to accomplish a takedown request because of child pornography laws in most (not all) countries. If the intimate image is of an adult over the age of 18yrs, sometimes it can be more challenging to have it removed depending upon the social media platform, their terms of service (TOS), and where it is located in the online world.
In this guide we will look at requesting a takedown from – Instagram, Snapchat, TikTok, YouTube, Discord, Twitch, Facebook, X (formerly known as Twitter), Tumblr, Reddit, Skype, LinkedIn, Pinterest, WhatsApp, and Google Images. At the end of this guide, we also provide a 10 step emergency protocol to implement immediately if your picture or video is threatened to be used in a sextortion!
No matter what social media platform you will be connecting with to request a takedown, it is important that you share these six essential elements with the social media vendor if possible:
- Confirm that you are the person in the intimate image/ video that was posted.
- Screen Capture the intimate image/video that was posted as evidence, as well as it’s URL (where it is located on the platform/internet). The URL is required in most takedown requests.
- Confirm your age at the time of the intimate image/video was posted, this is especially true if at the time of the production of the picture/video you were under the age of 18yrs, which would make it “child pornography” and is a federal crime in Canada and in most countries.
- Confirm you did not post the intimate image/video, and you did not give consent to anyone else to post the image/video – which is a federal crime in Canada.
- If you notified the police, provide the name of the police department, the police case number, and the investigating officer. Often, this can expedite a social media platform to take an image down.
- Include the section of the social media Terms of Service (TOS) that the image/video violates. Most social media vendors state clearly that the posting of any nudity is a clear violation of their policy and subject to immediate removal.
Important Note:
If you are reporting the non-consensual distribution of an intimate image/video to the police (which we highly encourage), we recommend that before you start connecting with a social media platform to have it taken down, ensure that the police give you the go ahead to do so first. In some cases, and depending upon the police agency, law enforcement may need to gather required evidence before a takedown action is initiated.
INSTAGRAM:
APP Reporting:
- Log into your Instagram account
- Tap the three dots above the picture or video that was posted
- Tap on “Nudity or sexual activity”
- Tap on appropriate category and then tap on “Submit report”
Instagram Direct Messages Reporting:
- Log in to your Instagram account
- Tap on message you want to report
- Tap the username at the top of the chat
- Tap on three dots
- Tap on “Report”
- Tap on “Report, Post, Message”
- Tap on “It’s posting content that shouldn’t be on Instagram”
- Tap on “Nudity or sexual activity”
- Tap on “Non-Consensual Intimate Images” and then Hit “Submit Report”
SNAPCHAT:
App Reporting
- Press the three dots in the top right corner of the Snapchat or Snap Story
- Click on “Report Snap”
- Click “Nudity or Sexual Content”
TIKTOK
App Reporting
- Log into your TikTok account
- Tap on user profile by clicking on their TikTok username and tap three dots
- Tap on “Report”
- Tap on “Report account”
- Tap on “Posting Inappropriately Content”
- Tap on “Minor safety”
- Tap on “Child abuse”
- Tap on “Inappropriate for Minors” and then Tap “Submit”
YOUTUBE
App Reporting
- Click on video to be reported
- Tap on three dots in top right corner
- Tap “Report User”
- Tap “Child Endangerment” fill in info and then click “Submit”
DISCORD
App Reporting:
- Open Discord and go to your user settings by tapping the gear or profile picture icon located next to your username in side menu
- iPhone – tap “Appearance” and then “Advanced”
- Android – scroll down to “App Settings” and tap “Behavior”
- Turn on “Developer Mode” by toggling that option to the “on” position
- Open the user’s profile by tapping on their icon.
- Tap the three dots in the upper right corner of the screen and then select “Copy ID” (User ID will carry slightly depending on if you are using an iPhone or Android)
- To get message link, go to message and then tap and hold on it. iPhone – select “Copy Message Link”. Android – select “Share” and then “Copy to clipboard”
- Head to Discord “Trust and Safety Team” https://bit.ly/3zpK2r8 . Paste the two ID’s in the “Description” box and provide more context for your report
TWITCH
App Reporting:
- Tap three horizontal dots on right side of the Users Channel
- Tap “Report”
- Tap “Sexual Content Involving Minors”
- Tap on “Tell us more” and fill in details, then click “Submit Report”
App Reporting:
- Log into Facebook
- Tap on picture to be reported
- Tap three dots in top right-hand corner and then click “Find Support or Report Photo” in the drop-down menu
- Tap on “Nudity”
- Tap On “Involves a child” (if under the age of 18yrs)
- Tap on “Sharing private images” if over 18yrs
- Tap “Submit”
Facebook Messenger:
- Log into Facebook Messenger
- Tap on person’s name at the top
- Scroll down – tap “Somethings Wrong” and then pick the appropriate category “Sharing Inappropriate Things” then “Nudity” (18yrs and older) or “Involves a Child (under 18yrs) – similar process as noted above.
Other Social Media Site:
- X (formerly known as Twitter) Non-consensual nudity policy & reporting https://help.x.com/en/rules-and-policies/intimate-media
- Tumblr reporting https://www.tumblr.com/abuse
- Reddit – Policy & reporting https://support.reddithelp.com/hc/en-us/articles/360043513411-Never-Post-Intimate-or-Sexually-Explicit-Media-of-Someone-Without-Their-Consent
- Skype – reporting https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/skype/how-do-i-block-unblock-or-report-abuse-in-skype-915ee864-2156-4e37-882c-3a5a3812bd2c
- LinkedIn – reporting https://www.linkedin.com/help/linkedin/answer/a1344213/
- Pinterest – reporting https://help.pinterest.com/en-gb/article/report-something-on-pinterest
- Whatsapp – reporting https://faq.whatsapp.com/1142481766359885/?locale=en_US&cms_platform=iphone
If the intimate picture/video that is being shared is being hosted on a google product (this would include Google Hangouts, Gmail, and YouTube as Google owns YouTube) click on this link, fill in required info, and then hit “Submit”
https://support.google.com/families/contact/report_child_grooming
Google Images:
- If the picture/video appears in a Google Images search, it means it has been captured and cached by Google.
- Remove explicit or intimate personal images from Google search results https://support.google.com/websearch/answer/6302812?hl=en
- To have the picture/video deleted (un-cached) by Google so that they don’t disappear once deleted from Google search, you will have to make an application to the site where it was originally posted and hosted to have it taken down first.
- If you do not know where the picture was originally posted and hosted, click on the picture in google images, then click on the “visit” button – this will take you to the site where the picture is being hosted.
- Look for information on how to contact the owner of the site to request that the picture be taken down – if under the age of 18yrs, make sure that you mention clearly that this is you in the picture/video, it is considered “Child Pornography” in Canada, and that the police are now involved (add the name of the police department, police case number, and investigating officer)
- CAUTION – if the site in question is one that primarily focuses on posting embarrassing or even slanderous content, or a porn site, be very cautious. If the request is not done properly, it could make the takedown process more complicated.
- Once the picture/video has been removed from the host site, then you can make application to Google to have the picture removed from the Google Images cache. It should be noted that if you do not do this, Google Images will likely re-cache the images/video from the original site where it is posted, and appear in Google Images once again. You can make a request for Google removal here:
https://search.google.com/search-console/remove-outdated-content
Google Alerts:
- Once the picture has been deleted from the Google Image Cache, you should now set up Google Alerts which can be found here https://www.google.ca/alerts (note – you will need a Gmail account for this)
- In the Google Alerts search block, type in your first and last name in quotation marks, as an example – “John Smith”- The quotation marks are known as a Boolean to Google, and helps to narrow down searches.
- If the picture/video is re-posted to the light web and tagged with your name, Google Alerts will often pick up on this fact and send you an immediate alert to your Gmail. If this happens, you will have to once again implement the Google Images removal process mentioned earlier.
MANAGING SEXTORTION
Is Your Child Trapped in an Online Sextortion Situation? Our 10 Step Emergency Protocol To Implement Immediately:
Over the past 2 years, five teenagers in Canada have tragically ended their lives due to being the target of a sextortion. As of July, 2024, we’ve now provided assistance to 321 teenagers, and their families, who faced similar threats. It’s crucial to note that the fear of their pictures being exposed can cause immense emotional, psychological, and social distress among teens that can lead to suicidal ideations.
According to Dr Scott Hadland, chief of adolescent medicine at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston,
“teen brains are still developing. When something catastrophic happens, like a personal picture is released to people online, it’s hard for the teen to look past that moment and understand that in the big scheme of things they’ll be able to get through this”
It’s no wonder that some teens will have suicidal ideations that they will sometimes act on.
It’s imperative to alleviate stress in our children as soon as possible, as this can help reduce suicidal ideations. That’s why we’ve been sharing this 10-step emergency protocol, which we have developed over the past couple of years, with teens and parents that we have found effectively reduces stress, while also providing hope to teenagers that things are going to be ok.
- Stop All Communications – Don’t’ Engage
- Don’t Pay Any Ransom (money, gift cards, more pictures or video)
- Screen Capture All Communications
- Deactivate But Don’t Delete Yet
- Notify The Police
- Block and Delete
- Don’t Accept Any Friends or Followers For the Next 48hrs
- Set Up Google Alerts
- Don’t Hire A Fee-For-Service Takedown Company
- Change Your Phone Number
#1 Stop All Communications – Don’t Engage:
Immediately STOP all communication with this person (Capper). Often, teens believe that they can negotiate their way out of the situation or lower the price of the ransom. The reality – the longer you try to negotiate your way out of the situation, the worse it will get.
#2 Don’t Pay Any Ransom (money, gift cards, more pictures or video):
Do not pay any ransom that this person may be asking for including money, gift cards, pictures or more video (PayPal, Venmo, money order, e-transfer, bitcoin, Apple gift cards). If you pay, you will be labeled a “whale” and they WILL come back for more. According to cybertips.ca report https://bit.ly/3GEor26 in 93% of cases where a ransom is paid, the capper comes back to ask for more money. This is something that we have seen with several teens who we have helped who did pay a ransom. If money was paid, connect with your bank or credit card vendor to see if it can be canceled.
#3 Screen Capture All Communications:
Screen capture all communications as evidence if possible. If you can’t screen capture, think about placing your device on airplane mode so that any pictures or text-based evidence cannot be deleted remotely by the capper.
#4 Deactivate But Don’t Delete:
Deactivate and don’t delete your account, and do not block or delete this person until after you speak with the police, and they let you know to go ahead and do so. There are times that police may want to conduct an account takeover (pretending to be you) in an attempt to locate the capper. If you delete your account, this can’t happen. Also, do not delete any nude that you sent, often a first instinct for many youth – you will read why this important in step #5.
How to deactivate accounts:
Instagram – https://www.facebook.com/help/instagram/728869160569983/
TikTok – https://support.tiktok.com/en/account-and-privacy/deleting-an-account/deactivate-your-account
Snapchat – The only way to deactivate Snapchat is to delete it. After you delete your Snapchat, the platform gives you 30 days to change your mind before deleting your account permanently. So, to temporarily deactivate your Snapchat, you could cancel the deletion process before the 30-day period ends
#5: Notify The Police:
Given that this is a crime (known as extortion) you should report it to the police first. If it is someone who you know personally, often police can assist to get the intimate picture or video deleted. However, if this person is someone you do not know, then it has been our experience that people who do this online are usually, not always, located in Russia, Southeast Asia, Somalia, Nigeria, or the Ivory Coast of Africa. Due to this geographical challenge, police intervention might be limited in effectiveness. Nonetheless, we still advise reporting the incident to the authorities, although the decision ultimately rests with you.
Also by reporting it to the police they can work with the Canadian Center For Child Protection https://bit.ly/3NNythw If you still have the nude that you sent, they will take it and do something that is called a “hash” (digitally fingerprint the picture) so that if it does appear online (both on the surface web and the deep web), it will immediately be identified by a program that they use called “Project Arachnid” (Canada Only) https://www.projectarachnid.ca/en/ , and action taken to have it taken down wherever possible – thus why we do not want you to delete the nude that you sent.
***Note***
You can still notify Project Arachnid online for assistance, without having to connect with the police.
In the United States, the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children have a similar program called “Take It Down” https://takeitdown.ncmec.org/
***Note***
It’s very common that the capper will state that if you notify the police, you will be arrested because if you are under the age of 18 you broke the law by creating and sending in their words “child pornography” which is illegal. However, in Canada, this assertion is legally inaccurate, and you WILL NOT face arrest. This misinformation is intended to heighten pressure for compliance with their demands and dissuade you from contacting law enforcement.
#6: Block and Delete:
After informing the police and receiving their approval to block and delete the capper, proceed accordingly. However, if you opt not to involve law enforcement, promptly block, and delete the individual. If you choose to retain your account, make it private, change your password, and activate two-factor authentication if available.
#7 Don’t Accept Any Friends or Followers For the Next 48hrs
Once you have blocked and deleted the person, they will attempt to reconnect with you via a different feed or social network. Do not accept any new friend or follow requests on any of your platforms for the next 48hrs, and do not answer any calls from people you don’t recognize including on Apps like Snapchat.
Based on our experience with 310 teenagers we’ve assisted, it’s “likely” that the nude images won’t be widely redistributed. In fact, we haven’t encountered a single instance where the sent nudes were widely disseminated. While we can’t guarantee this won’t occur (as we’ve heard reports of it happening elsewhere), none of our cases have resulted in widespread distribution – not one. However, in six instances, the nude images were shared with one or two friends as part of the coercion tactics to compel payment of the ransom. It’s not uncommon for the perpetrator to send you screenshots of your friends on social media to increase pressure for compliance with their demands. If this happens, and your face was not in the picture, then you have deniability and can say “that’s not me” to those few friends and followers who were sent the picture/video. If your face was in the picture, it does make it more difficult, but good friends will not re-distribute.
Additionally, it’s crucial to understand that several leading social networks employ highly effective artificial intelligence (AI) systems. These systems can swiftly detect and remove nude content posted in public areas of their platforms, although this isn’t always guaranteed. If such content isn’t promptly removed, it’s advisable to contact the social media platform directly to request its removal.
Usually, after 48hrs, this person will move on to another target because time is money to these criminals. This is a money game, and time is money in their world. If they think they can get anything from you, they will continue to put time and effort into their pressure campaign. Thus, why blocking, deleting, and having no more interaction is so important.
#8 Set Up Google Alerts:
The next step, set up Google Alerts https://www.google.ca/alerts – you will need a Gmail account to use this tool. In the Google Alerts search bar, type your name in quotation marks “John Smith”. By doing this, Google will search your full name every day and if the nude gets posted/reposted and tagged with your name on the surface web, Google will likely pick up on it and send you an alert to your Gmail account. Now if you get an alert, don’t panic, there may be hundreds of other people in the world who have the same first and last name as yours. If you get an alert, click on it, and make sure it is you. If it is your nude, you will now know where it is being hosted online and can then make an application to have it taken down as child sexual abuse material if you are under the age of 18yrs.
#9 Don’t Hire A Fee-For-Service Takedown Company:
Be very careful about hiring a company who advertises that for a fee they can stop the capper from distributing the intimate images sent, and recover the intimate images sent so they could not be used again. We have worked with several teens and their parents where they located such a company online, paid a significant amount of money, and in the end these companies stated they did everything possible but there was nothing they could do.
#10 Change Your Phone Number:
We’ve encountered multiple instances where sharing your phone number with the scammer and complying with their ransom demands led to them passing your number to another scammer, who then targets you. This underscores the importance of taking action if you’ve shared your number. Reach out to your cellphone provider to change your number. While it might be inconvenient, it’s a crucial step to avoid further contact from these criminals.
Again, we know how traumatic an intimate image/video that goes or is threatened to go public online can be for youth. Remember, once the capper reveals themselves, they will “induce stress, anxiety, or discomfort so that the victim will make decisions that contravene their best interest”, this is especially true with youth & teens!
We must emphasize that in most cases that we have been involved in, where it was a stranger (capper) that targeted a teen for sextortion, in the vast majority of cases the nude is not redistributed – but we can’t guarantee this fact. However, in most cases after 48hrs, these cappers will move on to their next target and the nude will not be posted and you will not hear from the capper again.
For more in-depth information on sextortion, we have dedicated a whole chapter in our FREE web book for parents on the topic that you can find here https://thewhitehatter.ca/sextortion/
The White Hatter
