RELEASES

Congresswoman Speier, Fellow

Members of Congress Take on
Nonconsensual Pornography, AKA
Revenge Porn
Washington, DC - Congresswoman Jackie Speier (D-San Francisco/San
Mateo counties) today introduced federal legislation targeting perpetrators
who share nonconsensual pornography, also known as revenge porn, and
the online predators who profit from the further distribution of such images.
The Intimate Privacy Protection Act (IPPA) is a bipartisan bill cosponsored by
Reps. Katherine Clark (MA-5), Ryan Costello (PA-6), Gregory Meeks (NY-5),
and Thomas Rooney (FL-17) and supported by numerous victims rights and
legal organizations.

Technology today makes it

possible to destroy a persons
life with the click of a button or
a tap on a cell phone. That is
all anyone needs to broadcast
another persons private
images without their consent.
The damage caused by these attacks can crush careers, tear apart families,
and, in the worst cases, has led to suicide, Congresswoman Speier said.
What makes these acts even more despicable is that many predators have
gleefully acknowledged that the vast majority of their victims have no way to
fight back. Celebrities and other high profile victims might be able take on
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these predators in civil courts, but the average person cant afford that
option. Even more disturbing is the number of victims who have mustered the
courage and strength to pursue criminal charges, only to learn there is no law
that protects them. My bill will fix that appalling legal failure.
Specifically, IPPA would make it illegal for an individual to knowingly
distribute sexually explicit material with reckless disregard for the victims
lack of consent. The bill recognizes that the distribution of nonconsensual
pornography is a privacy violation, as nonconsensual pornography is not
always about revenge or harassment. Recent examples of this would include
recent cases of medical and law enforcement personnel sharing private
images of vulnerable individuals for entertainment purposes. The bill focuses
on the harm caused to the victim rather than the motive of the perpetrator.
It is important we provide victims of such serious violations of privacy a
course for response, Congressman Costello said. These acts of bullying
have ruined careers, families, and even led to suicide. The Intimate Privacy
Protection Act would establish federal guidelines for this criminal activity and
provide a course for response at a federal level. Im proud to cosponsor this
legislation and thank Congresswoman Speier for her leadership on this
issue.
IPPA also provides safe-harbor protections for online intermediaries dealing
with third-party content, while allowing the prosecution of sites that actively
promote or solicit nonconsensual pornography. The bill, unlike some state
laws, contains explicit statutory protections for First Amendment rights. This
means that any disclosure of private information that is public, voluntary or in
the bona fide public interest would not be criminalized.
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Right now millions of women and girls are online navigating their personal
and professional lives. Sadly, they are the targets of the worst types of online
abuses, including nonconsensual pornography, said Congresswoman
Clark. Nonconsensual pornography is ruining womens lives. The victims
privacy is irreparably violated, they fear for their safety, their job opportunities
are jeopardized, and they are often driven to feel shame and guilt. The
Intimate Privacy Protection Act ensures that our laws are keeping pace with
threats in an online world that should be safe and open to everyone.
Although 34 states have passed laws to address nonconsensual
pornography, their approaches vary widely. A federal law is needed to
provide a single, clear articulation of the elements of the crime and ensure
that Americans in every part of the country have the means to protect
themselves if they subjected to such abuse. That is why IPPA has earned
strong support from victims rights organizations, constitutional law experts,
social media companies and online organizations, and Democratic and
Republican Members of Congress.
The bill is supported by the Cyber Civil Rights Initiative; Information
Technology and Innovation Foundation; National Democratic Institute;
National Organization for Women; Feminist Majority; Girls, Inc.; Facebook;
and Twitter. Statements from supporters are listed below:
Erwin Chemerinsky, leading constitutional law scholar and Dean of the
University of California, Irvine School of Law: The Intimate Privacy
Protection Act needs to be passed by Congress to deal with a serious
problem that has arisen with the development of the internet and social
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media: posting, without consent, of nude photographs and videos of sexual

activity. Revenge porn has proliferated. There is no First Amendment
problem with this bill. The First Amendment does not protect a right to invade
a persons privacy by publicizing, without consent, nude photographs or
videos of sexual activity.
Anisha Vora, nonconsensual pornography survivor: After being a victim
of nonconsensual pornography, I was always paranoid and had a fear for
what could happen. After my ex-boyfriend posted intimate photographs of
myself on numerous websites, resulting in them expanding to over 3,000
links, I knew my family and I were no longer safe. With strangers
approaching me in public and online, and even attacking me in my own
home, I decided to fight back. By passing a federal bill, other victims will be
able to get justice, feel safe, and avoid some of the trauma and anguish that
so many of us have already suffered.
Erin Egan, Vice President of US Public Policy for Facebook: Using
intimate content to intentionally shame, embarrass or control someone is
abhorrent thats why Facebook supports efforts like Congresswoman
Speiers to outlaw this practice. States around the country have passed
legislation to criminalize the nonconsensual sharing of intimate images for
the purpose of causing emotional distress. We proudly join consumer and
safety advocates in pushing for the same at the federal level.
Amanda Faulkner, US Public Policy Manager, Twitter: "The unauthorized
distribution of intimate content is a form of abuse and something that is not
tolerated on Twitter. We're glad to see Rep. Speier and so many of our safety

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partners taking the lead on this important issue, and we're proud to stand
with them in support of this legislation."
Victims Rights Attorney Carrie Goldberg: At last count, my law firm has
dealt with 919 sexually graphic images and videos published on the Internet
without the consent of our client. Our clients are naked on a platter for
strangers to devour without their consent. They become sexual
entertainment without agreeing to be. Victims are harassed and blackmailed
by strangers. Because the content appears in their search engine results, my
clients fear they will never get hired and that nobody will want to date them.
In religiously conservative cultures, victims are excommunicated. They are
forced to move, quit school, change jobs, change their names. The
consequences of nonconsensual porn are so serious and life-altering, federal
criminal intervention is urgently needed. Just as we have laws that protect
commercial interests like data and trade secrets, we as individuals also
deserve intervention from the government.
Mary Anne Franks, Professor of Law, University of Miami School of Law
and Legislative & Tech Policy Director, Cyber Civil Rights Initiative:
This bill is a triumph for privacy rights. Like private medical or financial
information, private sexual information deserves protection and respect. The
unauthorized disclosure of the most intimate moments of a person's life,
whether driven by malice, greed, or voyeurism, causes immediate and often
irreversible harm. This bill is urgently needed to deter this conduct before it
happens, and to offer victims the possibility of justice.
Sandra Pepera, Director for Gender, Women and Democracy at the National
Democratic Institute: "All violence against women is wrong, and must be
stopped. That includes unauthorized sexually explicit photos or film posted
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online which can be used to harass, threaten, and intimidate women in public
life and politics. Congresswoman Jackie Speier and her colleagues are to be
commended for their efforts to address these extremely important issues.
The National Democratic Institute's #NotTheCost initiative takes a
comprehensive approach to stopping violence against politically active
women, which has a chilling impact on the aspirations of women to lead,
especially younger women."
Annmarie Chiarini , nonconsensual pornography survivor and victims
advocate: In 2010 and again in 2011 I was a victim of non-consensual
pornography. An ex-boyfriend attempted to auction off a CD on eBay that
contained nude images of me that I had reluctantly allowed him to take over
the course of our relationship. Fourteen months after the eBay auction, he
posted the images on a porn website. He created a profile on the website
that included my full name, the town where I live, the college and campus
where I teach and a solicitation for sex. He was pretending to be me and was
having conversations with the people who left violent and threatening
comments on the images. The profile had been viewed over 3,000 times in
less than two weeks. There were 20 pages of comments.
Both times I sought the help of law enforcement officials who shamed me,
insulted me, and openly laughed at me. In Maryland, where I live, there were
no laws in place that could have protected me. However, the man who
posted the images lived in New Jersey where a law had been in place for
several years. If the police were doing their jobs, he would have been
brought up on felony charges.

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The helplessness I suffered became all-consuming; I attempted suicide. I

was ashamed, frightened, and convinced the only way to save myself was to
kill myself.
Ive since recovered from the trauma that ex-boyfriend inflicted on me and
went on to assist over 2,000 victims of non-consensual pornography through
my work with the Cyber Civil Rights Initiative. I testified in support of two bills,
one in Maryland and one in Washington DC, that criminalized nonconsensual pornography. Both bills were passed into law.
Throughout my ordeal, I, and the majority of the victims I assisted, heard the
words, If you hadnt let him take the pictures, this never would have
happened.
While true, those words represent the rampant complacency that exists in
crimes of a sexual nature. Those words send the message that legislators
and law enforcement turn a blind eye towards the destructive behavior of
posting intimate images without consent. They intimate that it is just too hard
to implement consequences on those who publish nude images without
consent thus driving their victims to suicide.
Its time to stop being complacent. Join us, the advocates and attorneys who
havent been afraid to do the difficult work that casts blame where it belongs
on the perpetrators of revenge porn.

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