Intimate images and deepfakes spread on Telegram: how to have them removed and how to report

In short

The fault lies with whoever spreads the images, never with the person pictured.

Do not pay, do not negotiate, do not send more images.

In Italy you can ask the data protection authority (Garante privacy) to step in before the images are spread: it decides within 48 hours.

StopNCII blocks the images on many platforms without you having to upload them, but Telegram does not take part.

Spreading intimate images without consent is a crime in Italy and in Switzerland. Report early: there are deadlines.

If the images involve a minor, do not forward them to anyone and go to the police straight away.

Discovering that intimate images of you are circulating, or fake images built with your face, is one of the hardest experiences you can have online. Shock, fear and shame are normal reactions. You are not the one who did something wrong, and there are concrete tools to limit the damage.

1. The first things to do

Do not reply to whoever is threatening you and do not pay: whoever pays once is usually targeted again.
Do not send more images, even if they ask for them “in exchange for silence”.
Save the evidence without spreading the images: message links, name and ID of the group or channel, accounts that published them, date and time, threatening messages. There is no need to take screenshots of the images themselves. Here we explain how.
Do not forward the images to anyone, not even to friends or family to ask for help.

2. Stop the spread

Garante privacy (Italy). If you fear that your sexually explicit images will be published, you can report it to the Garante before it happens, indicating the platforms involved and the reason for your fear. The Garante decides within 48 hours and can order the platforms to block publication. The platforms keep the material for 12 months so that it can be used as evidence. The Garante warns that it cannot guarantee that the images will not circulate anyway.

StopNCII.org. The tool creates on your device a “fingerprint” of the images, a code that identifies them without showing them, and shares it with the participating platforms: among them Meta (Facebook and Instagram), TikTok, Reddit, X, Snapchat and Microsoft. The images never leave your phone. Telegram does not take part, but StopNCII helps prevent the images from moving from Telegram to other platforms. It is designed for images of adults.

Google. You can ask Google to remove from search results intimate images published without consent. Google removes them from the results, not from the site that hosts them.

3. Report to Telegram

On public channels and groups, use the Report button and write to abuse@telegram.org with the message links.
On private groups, only members can report; Telegram states that it does not process external requests about them.

Telegram states that in 2025 it removed over 950,000 nude contents created with artificial intelligence. Associations, however, say that many reports remain unanswered. For this reason, in Italy PermessoNegato can help you: an association that reports content to platforms as a priority and offers free initial legal and psychological guidance.

In the United Kingdom a specialised public service, the Revenge Porn Helpline, obtains removal in over 90% of cases: working with people who know the platforms makes the difference.

4. What the law says

In Italy

The unlawful sharing of sexually explicit images or videos without the consent of the person pictured is a crime (Article 612-ter of the Italian Criminal Code): imprisonment from 1 to 6 years and a fine from 5,000 to 15,000 euros, more serious if committed with IT tools. Proceedings are as a rule on a criminal complaint (querela), to be filed within 6 months.
Since 2025 the sharing of content created or altered with artificial intelligence without consent is also punished, with imprisonment from 1 to 5 years (Article 612-quater).
If someone asks you for money or anything else so as not to spread the images, extortion may also be involved.

In Switzerland

Forwarding non-public sexual content without the person’s consent is a crime (Article 197a of the Swiss Criminal Code), punished more severely if the content is made public. It is prosecuted on a criminal complaint.
For deepfakes there is not yet a specific offence. Depending on the case, misuse of someone else’s identity, offences against honour or the forwarding of intimate content may apply. In 2026 a journalistic investigation documented deepfakes of at least 14 women living in Switzerland in public Telegram groups; Telegram deleted them after the journalists’ request.

These rules should be read with a lawyer: the details of your case matter.

5. Report to the police

In Italy you can go to the Polizia Postale or to any Police or Carabinieri station; in Switzerland to the cantonal police or the public prosecutor’s office. Bring the evidence you saved. You can report even if you do not know who is behind it: only the authorities can ask Telegram for the account data. We talk about it here.

If the images involve a minor

This part is for parents and family members.

Do not forward or save the images: even possessing or sending them is a crime. Only note where you saw them (link, group name) and when.
Go to the police straight away: in Italy the Polizia Postale, in Switzerland the cantonal police.
Take It Down helps have images removed that were taken when the person was under 18, using the same “fingerprint” system.
In Italy Telefono Azzurro answers on 19696.
Reassure your son or daughter: it is not their fault, and asking for help was the right thing to do.

Take care of yourself

People whose intimate images are spread often experience anxiety, fear, shame and isolation. Talk to someone you trust or to a listening service: in Italy 1522 and Telefono Amico (02 2327 2327), in Switzerland victim support (142) and the listening service 143 (Die Dargebotene Hand). You will find all the contacts in Who can help you.

What to do now

Do not pay and do not reply.
Save the evidence without spreading the images.
In Italy, report to the Garante privacy; use StopNCII for the other platforms.
Report the public content to Telegram.
Report to the police within the deadlines.
Ask for help: PermessoNegato and the other services.

Updated 14 October 2026. General information, not legal advice.