Receiving an unsolicited intimate photo, or discovering a fake sexual montage of yourself generated by AI: it is neither a joke, nor “just the internet”.
What Europe provides for
Directive (EU) 2024/1385 requires every member state to punish:
- Sharing intimate images without consent
- Creating and sharing sexual deepfakes
- Certain forms of cyberharassment and digital surveillance
- Cyberflashing, that is sending unsolicited images of genitals, when it can cause significant psychological harm
It also requires free helplines, available 24/7.
Careful: it is not French law yet
A directive sets a goal. Each country has until 14 June 2027 to bring it into its own law. France therefore has no specific cyberflashing offence yet.
What is already punished in France
Sharing a sexual deepfake of a person without their consent is already an offence: up to 3 years in prison and a €75,000 fine when it is shared online (article 226-8-1 of the Criminal Code).
The right reflexes
- Do not delete everything right away: take screenshots first (account, date, message).
- Report it on the platform and on PHAROS.
- The 3018 helpline supports victims of digital violence free of charge.