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What do I do if there’s someone faking nudes of me?

theres a fake account saying they got nudes of me making them like its me

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Sam

Hi there,

Someone sharing fake nudes can be just as upsetting and worrying as if the photos were real. One of the hardest things about having nudes leaked online is the worry about what other people, like friends and family, might think if they saw them. Whether the images are real or not doesn't matter, the impact it has is still real.

It's illegal to have sexual images of anyone under the age of 18 – real or fake – and that includes nude photos. Fake photos like this are called pseudo-images. It involves someone using software to either make a completely fake picture or to put a real person into another image. If someone has a picture like this then they’re breaking the law just as much as if they had a real sexual image of a child.

If someone has made a fake social media account with these images then you can report this to the police. The idea of talking to the police might be scary but just remember that you've done nothing wrong. You can talk to them by calling 101 or by reporting a crime online. Telling the police means that they can force the people doing it to take it down. If you don't feel like you can do that on your own, try talking to an adult you trust about what's happening and they might be able to help you tell the police.

​If you don't want to talk to the police then you can report the account to the social media platform it’s on, like Instagram or Twitter, for instance. This should mean that the account is taken down and banned if the pictures are illegal. You can do this yourself but if you need help getting sexual pictures of you taken down (whether real or faked), you can also use Childline's Report-Remove tool.

The most important thing is to look after your own feelings. There are a lot of different emotions you might be feeling because of what's happened. Talking is always better than holding things in, so make sure you have a friend or someone you trust to talk to. If you don't think there is anyone, Childline counsellors are always here for you.

I hope this has helped, thanks for sharing this.

Take care, 

Sam.

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