In Canada, publishing, texting or sharing intimate images of someone without their consent is a crime.
What is an intimate image?
An intimate image can be a photo or video. It shows one of these things:
- a naked person,
- certain parts of the body, like breasts or genitals,
- explicit sexual activity.
The person in the image expects the image to remain private.
An intimate image can also be a “deepfake”. A deepfake is an image created or altered using artificial intelligence. For example, it could be a video where the face of someone showing their genitals is replaced with the victim’s face.
Illegal behaviour
It’s a crime to post an intimate video of another person on a website and to send intimate photos of an ex to a friend via text message. It’s also a crime to threaten to do these things.
Images of a minor: Someone who publishes or shares intimate images of a child under 18 could also be accused of distributing child pornography. This is the case even if the child or teen agrees that the photos can be shared.
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Important! Since October 10, 2025, the Criminal Code has replaced the term “child pornography” with “child sexual abuse and exploitation material.” For now, Éducaloi will continue to use the term “child pornography” in its content. |
For more information: see our article on the non-consensual sharing of intimate images, which details the available remedies. If you are a social worker, we also offer a e-learning module on this topic.