Frequently Asked Questions
01 What is Alecto AI?
Alecto AI is a free AI agent for survivors of image-based abuse: leaked intimate images (often called “revenge porn”), sextortion, AI deepfakes and hidden-camera recordings. You tell Alecto what happened once. It prepares takedown requests for platforms, a report for the police and a file for a lawyer, and connects you to support services. Nothing is shared without your permission.
02 I just found intimate images of me online. What do I do first?
Take a breath. You have not done anything wrong, and there are clear steps you can take. First, do not download, forward or re-post the material, even to report it. Save what you safely can: the web address, the account name, a screenshot of the page around the image, and the date and time you found it.
Then report it to the platform. Since 19 May 2026, U.S. platforms must act within 48 hours of a valid request. If you are in the U.S. and over 18, you can also call the CCRI Image Abuse Helpline at 1‑844‑878‑2274; it is free and open 24/7. If you are in physical danger right now, contact local emergency services first.
Sources
Federal Trade Commission
Cyber Civil Rights Initiative
NCMEC
03 My ex posted my nudes online. What can I do?
What your ex did is often called “revenge porn”. The law calls it publishing intimate images without consent, and since 19 May 2025 it has been a federal crime in the United States under the TAKE IT DOWN Act. It is not your fault, even if you once shared the images with them.
You can ask each platform to remove the images; covered platforms must act within 48 hours of a valid request. You can report your ex to the police, and you can sue them in federal court for damages under 15 U.S.C. § 6851. Alecto can prepare the takedown requests, a police report and a lawyer intake file from one account of what happened.
Sources
Congressional Research Service
Federal Trade Commission
U.S. Code
04 Someone is blackmailing me with my photos. Should I pay?
No. This is called sextortion. The FBI warns that paying does not make it stop: blackmailers usually ask for more, and often share the images anyway. Stop replying, but do not delete the messages, the account or your chat history, because they help investigators.
Report it to the FBI at tips.fbi.gov or 1‑800‑CALL‑FBI, or to local police. Under the TAKE IT DOWN Act, threatening to share intimate images is itself a federal crime. If images are already online, StopNCII.org (18 and over) or NCMEC’s Take It Down (under 18) can help block them. Be wary of companies that charge sextortion victims for help; the FBI warns against them.
Sources
FBI
Congressional Research Service
StopNCII.org / Revenge Porn Helpline
05 Someone made AI nudes or a deepfake porn video of me. Is that illegal?
In the United States, publishing it is. The TAKE IT DOWN Act covers “digital forgeries”: sexual images or videos of a real, identifiable person made or edited with AI or other software so that they look real. Knowingly publishing one without consent is a federal crime, and so is threatening to publish one to intimidate, coerce, extort or cause distress.
Platforms must remove AI-generated intimate images within 48 hours of a valid request, the same as real ones. Google also has a dedicated form to remove fake explicit images of you from its search results. Many states have their own deepfake laws as well.
Sources
Congressional Research Service
Federal Trade Commission
Google Search Help
06 How do I get my images removed from Google or Bing search results?
Both search engines have free forms for this. Google lets you request removal of explicit or intimate images of you shared without consent, and has a separate form for fake explicit images. Microsoft’s form covers Bing. You will need the links to the pages or images.
Removing a search result does not delete the image from the website itself, so also send a takedown request to the site where it is posted. StopNCII.org can help stop the same image being re-uploaded to its partner platforms.
Sources
Google Search Help
Google Search Help
Microsoft
07 What does the TAKE IT DOWN Act actually do for me?
It puts the law firmly on your side. Signed on 19 May 2025, it makes knowingly publishing your intimate images or a sexual deepfake of you a federal crime, and it forces online platforms to give you a way to get the content removed.
Once a platform receives your valid request, it must take the content down, and make reasonable efforts to remove known identical copies, within 48 hours. Platforms have been required to comply since 19 May 2026.
Sources
Congress.gov
Congressional Research Service
Federal Trade Commission
The White House
08 What does my removal request need to include?
Four things: your signature (electronic is fine); enough detail for the platform to find the image or video; a short statement that you believe, in good faith, it was shared without your consent; and a way to contact you. If it is too much right now, someone you trust can send the request on your behalf.
Alecto builds all four from what you tell it, so you do not have to write it out again for every platform.
Sources
Congress.gov
Federal Trade Commission
09 The platform has not acted within 48 hours. What now?
You are not out of options. The Federal Trade Commission enforces these rules, and you can file a complaint at TakeItDown.ftc.gov about any platform that ignored a valid request or has no way to report at all. Keep a note of when you sent your request and anything they replied.
Sources
Federal Trade Commission
Federal Trade Commission
10 Can I sue the person who did this to me?
Yes. Under federal law (15 U.S.C. § 6851) you can bring a civil case in U.S. federal court against the person who shared your intimate images without consent. You can recover your actual losses or a fixed $150,000 in damages, plus your attorney's fees, and the court can order the images taken down and never shared again.
You can ask the court to let you sue under a pseudonym so your name stays private. You can hire a lawyer or represent yourself. If you want a lawyer, Alecto can prepare your intake file so the first call is easier.
Sources
U.S. Code
U.S. Department of Justice
11 Is what they did, or threatened to do, a crime?
Yes. Under the TAKE IT DOWN Act, knowingly publishing your intimate images or a deepfake of you without consent is a federal offense. So is intentionally threatening to do it in order to intimidate, coerce, extort or distress you, even if nothing is ever posted.
The penalty is up to 2 years in prison, or up to 3 years if you were under 18. Most U.S. states have their own laws too. If you decide to go to the police, Alecto can prepare a clear, structured report for them, without the abuse material itself.
Sources
Congressional Research Service
GovInfo
12 I was under 18 in the images. What is different for me?
You have extra protection. Any sexual image of a person under 18 is child sexual abuse material (CSAM) under U.S. law, and sharing it is a serious crime no matter who took it. You can report it to NCMEC's CyberTipline, and their analysts can notify platforms and keep watch until it is removed.
NCMEC's free Take It Down service lets you create a digital fingerprint of the image on your own device, without uploading it, so participating platforms can find and remove copies. It is anonymous, and you can use it even if you are over 18 now, as long as you were under 18 when the image was taken.
Sources
NCMEC
NCMEC
NCMEC
13 My child is being blackmailed for nudes. What should I do?
Stay calm and tell your child it is not their fault; the person blackmailing them is to blame. Do not pay or engage with the blackmailer, and help your child stop replying. Keep the account names and messages, but do not save, screenshot or forward any sexual image of your child, even as evidence.
Report it to NCMEC’s CyberTipline at report.cybertip.org and to the FBI at tips.fbi.gov or 1‑800‑CALL‑FBI. NCMEC’s free Take It Down tool can help remove or block the images. If your child is talking about self-harm, call or text 988 now.
Sources
FBI
NCMEC
NCMEC
14 How can StopNCII.org or Take It Down help without anyone seeing my images?
Both create a hash, a unique digital fingerprint, of your image or video right on your phone or computer. Only that fingerprint is sent. Your image never leaves your device and no one looks at it. Participating platforms check uploads against the fingerprint and remove or block matches.
StopNCII.org, run by the UK Revenge Porn Helpline, is for you if you were 18 or older in the image. Take It Down, run by NCMEC, is for images taken when you were under 18. Both work on public platforms, not on end-to-end encrypted messaging.
Sources
StopNCII.org / Revenge Porn Helpline
StopNCII.org
NCMEC
15 How do I report child sexual abuse material (CSAM)?
Report it to NCMEC's CyberTipline at report.cybertip.org. Do not download, save or share the material to make the report; give the link and account details instead. U.S. online providers are legally required to report CSAM they become aware of to the CyberTipline (18 U.S.C. § 2258A), and NCMEC passes reports to the right law enforcement agency.
Sources
NCMEC
U.S. Code
NCMEC
16 Is “revenge porn” the same as NCII?
Yes, they describe the same thing: sexual images or videos of someone shared without their consent. “Revenge porn” is the term most people know, but many survivors and advocates avoid it, because it suggests the person did something to deserve it, and because many cases have nothing to do with revenge.
Police, platforms and support organisations say non-consensual intimate imagery (NCII) or image-based sexual abuse instead. Whatever you call it, the same rights and tools apply to you.
Sources
U.S. Department of Justice
Cyber Civil Rights Initiative
17 Where does Alecto fit in for me?
The law gives you rights; Alecto helps you use them without telling your story over and over. You tell Alecto what happened, once. It confirms a real person is behind the request, checks that your account has what each recipient needs, and puts together your case file.
Then you decide what happens: takedown requests to platforms, an intake file for a lawyer, a structured report for police, or context for a therapist without the abuse material. Each one receives only what it needs, and nothing moves without your permission.
Sources
Federal Trade Commission
U.S. Code
18 I need to talk to someone right now.
You do not have to go through this alone. In the United States, the CCRI Image Abuse Helpline (1‑844‑878‑2274) is free, open 24 hours a day, and dedicated to image-based abuse for adults. If you were under 18 in the images, NCMEC can help you. If you or your family are in physical danger, call local emergency services first.
When you open Alecto, it also shows you helplines for the country you are in.
Sources
Cyber Civil Rights Initiative
U.S. DOJ Office for Victims of Crime
NCMEC
