【Ongoing Series Archives】

Source：Steady Information Network Editor：Entertainment Time：2025-06-26 07:59:49

Enough is Ongoing Series Archivesenough when it comes to posting explicit content, like photos or videos with nudity, without consent.

The practice, known as "revenge porn" or "sextortion," has been in the spotlight recently due to high-profile cases involving celebrities, such as Mischa Barton and Blac Chyna, but it doesn't just hurt victims in the public eye.

Yet there's no federal law that protects victims whose private images have been exploited online. What victims are left with is a patchwork of laws across 35 states, and legal hurdles if their perpetrators cross state lines.

SEE ALSO: 4 things you should do when you're the victim of revenge porn

A bipartisan group of U.S. senators including Kamala Harris, who fought against revenge porn as California's attorney general, Richard Burr, and Amy Klobuchar want to change that. They introduced legislation Tuesday morning that would make revenge porn a federal crime, with a punishment of up to five years behind bars, an undisclosed fine, or both.

"Revenge porn" and similar cases often include forwarding or posting intimate, private photos to online groups or social media pages. Some websites ask for sexual, nude, and private images and make money off those photos posted without the subject's consent or knowledge.

Mashable Trend Report Decode what’s viral, what’s next, and what it all means. Sign up for Mashable’s weekly Trend Report newsletter. By clicking Sign Me Up, you confirm you are 16+ and agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Thanks for signing up!

The proposed ENOUGH Act -- or the Ending Nonconsensual Online User Graphic Harassment -- aims to give the Department of Justice a tool to treat nonconsensual porn postings as a criminal offense.

"Perpetrators of exploitation who seek to humiliate and shame their victims must be held accountable," Sen. Harris said in a press release.

The senators' bill comes after a similar one was introduced in the House of Representatives last year. That one, the Intimate Privacy Protection Act, never got any legs, but the senators used its key points to develop the ENOUGH Act. Rep. Jackie Speier, who had introduced the House bill, is a co-sponsor of the ENOUGH Act, along with seven other representatives.

A recent California case of so-called revenge porn, also known as nonconsensual porn, brought the issue once again to the forefront with Rob Kardashian and Blac Chyna. Kardashian posted nonconsensual intimate images of his former partner on Instagram and Twitter. In California that is a crime. She obtained a restraining order keeping Kardashian away from her IRL and online. She recently sued the Kardashians for damaging her reputation in the months since the now-deleted posts went up.

Many law enforcement and women's rights groups support the bill. A majority of nonconsensual porn victims are females.

Tech companies like Facebook, Twitter, and Snap are on board. Indeed, the bill limits the companies' liability. Social media platforms have explicit rules against nonconsensual porn, but have struggled to stop it. Facebook rolled out a recent pilot plan to prevent the exploitative practice by collecting users' nude photos preemptively. Needless to say, the proposal raised some eyebrows.

It remains to be seen how far this bill will go, but if it eventually becomes law, revenge porn victims would finally have a wide-reaching law to lean on.

Featured Video For You

Sorry, but you just can't erase yourself from the internet

Topics Social Good Politics Senate

Previous：I'm a college professor. My advice to young people who feel hooked on tech

【Ongoing Series Archives】

Related Articles

Related Recommendations

Categories

Latest Articles

Popular Articles

Hot Recommendations

Featured Column

Quick Links

Quick Links