If you have fallen victim to revenge porn, you have options. Your Palm Beach Gardens revenge porn lawyer at The Lomnitzer Firm P.A. can help you get justice from individuals who share private and intimate images or videos without your permission. Through a revenge porn lawsuit, you may be able to achieve the removal of the images or videos and seek compensation from the individuals under federal and state law.
Florida Statutes Section 784.049 contains Florida’s sexual cyberharassment law, which includes provisions about revenge porn. Under this law, committing sexual cyberharassment means:
…to publish to an Internet website or disseminate through electronic means to another person a sexually explicit image of a person that contains or conveys the personal identification information of the depicted person without the depicted person’s consent, contrary to the depicted person’s reasonable expectation that the image would remain private, for no legitimate purpose, with the intent of causing substantial emotional distress to the depicted person. Evidence that the depicted person sent a sexually explicit image to another person does not, on its own, remove his or her reasonable expectation of privacy for that image.
The statute further defines “sexually explicit image” as “any image depicting nudity… or depicting a person engaging in sexual conduct.” Florida Statutes Section 847.001(9) defines “nudity” as:
[T]he showing of the human male or female genitals, pubic area, or buttocks with less than a fully opaque covering; or the showing of the female breast with less than a fully opaque covering of any portion thereof below the top of the nipple; or the depiction of covered male genitals in a discernibly turgid state.
Florida Statutes Section 847.001(16) defines “sexual conduct” as:
[A]ctual or simulated sexual intercourse, deviate sexual intercourse, sexual bestiality, masturbation, or sadomasochistic abuse; actual lewd exhibition of the genitals; actual physical contact with a person’s clothed or unclothed genitals, pubic area, buttocks, or, if such person is a female, breast with the intent to arouse or gratify the sexual desire of either party; or any act or conduct which constitutes sexual battery or simulates that sexual battery is being or will be committed.
Finally, a mother breastfeeding her baby is explicitly exempted from the definitions of either nudity or sexual conduct.
A person who willfully and maliciously sexually cyberharasses another person commits a first-degree misdemeanor, and a third-degree felony if they have a second or subsequent conviction for the same crime.
Aside from establishing the elements of a crime, Florida’s sexual cyberharassment statute creates the right for a victim to file a civil lawsuit against a person who commits sexual cyberharassment. Through this civil lawsuit, you can seek injunctive relief, which means that a judge can order the images and/or videos removed from the public forum and prevent them from being further distributed. You can also seek monetary damages from the person who committed sexual cyberharassment for $5,000 or your actual damages resulting from the sexual cyberharassment, whichever is greater. Finally, you can recover your reasonable attorney fees and court costs if you win your lawsuit.
The Tools to Address Known Exploitation by Immobilizing Technological Deepfakes on Websites and Networks Act, or the TAKE IT DOWN Act, went into effect in May 2025. This federal law prevents the online publication of intimate visual depictions of individuals, whether accurate or computer-generated, as well as threats of publication.
The TAKE IT DOWN Act further requires that certain online platforms, such as public websites, online services, and other forums for user-generated content, promptly remove these depictions within 48 hours of receiving notice of them. These platforms must have a process for victims of revenge porn to notify them about the existence and request the removal of the intimate visual depiction. The Federal Trade Commission has the power to enforce this provision of the law.
Under the TAKE IT DOWN Act, intimate visual depictions include:
Violators of the TAKE IT DOWN Act commit a crime. Offenders can face criminal penalties, including a prison sentence, a fine, or both. Furthermore, the judge must order restitution for the victim.
Under Florida Statutes Section 817.568(1)(f), “personal identification information” refers to “any name or number that may be used, alone or in conjunction with any other information, to identify a specific person.” The statute goes on to list specific types of information that fall within the classification of personal identification information.
You can seek various monetary damages, including actual damages for harm to your reputation and/or employment, costs of therapy or other mental health treatment, lost wages, and mental anguish.
No, the TAKE IT DOWN Act establishes revenge porn as a federal criminal offense, but it does not provide a civil cause of action under federal law.
A Wellington revenge porn attorney can help you get compensation for your damages stemming from a revenge porn incident. While a criminal conviction can provide some sense of justice, it doesn’t make up for the many losses you may have incurred because of the individual’s actions. Don’t hesitate to contact The Lomnitzer Firm P.A. today at (800) 853-9692 or online.
