Revenge Porn Laws in North Carolina: What Victims Need to Know in 2026
North Carolina has one of the tougher revenge porn statutes in the country, classifying the offense as a felony from the first offense. If you are a victim in North Carolina, here is what the law provides and how to take action.
What North Carolina Law Says
North Carolina General Statute 14-190.5A, the Disclosure of Private Images statute enacted in 2015 and strengthened in 2017, makes it a Class H felony to knowingly disclose an image of another person engaged in sexual conduct or with exposed genitalia or anus when the person depicted did not consent and the image was taken under circumstances where the person had a reasonable expectation of privacy. A Class H felony in North Carolina carries a presumptive sentence range of four to 25 months in prison for defendants with no prior criminal record. The felony classification from the first offense makes North Carolina one of the stricter states. Victims can also pursue civil remedies for damages under common law theories including invasion of privacy and intentional infliction of emotional distress.
What Counts as Revenge Porn in North Carolina
The statute covers images depicting another person engaged in sexual conduct or showing exposed genitalia or anus. The image must have been captured under circumstances where the depicted person had a reasonable expectation of privacy. The disclosure must be knowing, meaning the person distributing the image was aware of what they were sharing. The depicted person must not have consented to the disclosure. Unlike some states, North Carolina does not require proof of specific intent to harm, harass, or intimidate. This broader standard makes prosecution somewhat more straightforward compared to states with intent requirements. Images taken or shared in public contexts or voluntarily published by the depicted person are generally not covered.
How to Report
North Carolina victims should take immediate and thorough action. Document every instance of the images online, taking screenshots with visible URLs and timestamps. File a police report with your local police department or county sheriff's office, referencing N.C.G.S. 14-190.5A. Contact the District Attorney's office in your county to discuss prosecution as a Class H felony. Consult with an attorney about civil claims for invasion of privacy and emotional distress damages. Preserve all communications with the perpetrator, including texts, emails, and social media messages. If the images are on social media platforms, file NCII takedown requests through each platform's reporting tools simultaneously.
Limitations of Criminal Law
Although North Carolina's felony classification signals the seriousness of the offense, the criminal justice process still takes considerable time. Investigations must be completed, warrants obtained, and cases moved through the court system, a process that can take many months. During this time, images remain online and may be copied and redistributed. Jurisdictional challenges arise when perpetrators are in other states or when content is hosted internationally. While the absence of a specific intent-to-harm requirement simplifies prosecution, the state still must prove the disclosure was knowing and without consent. A criminal conviction, including prison time, does not result in automatic content removal from the internet.
Removing the Content
Content removal requires proactive effort regardless of the criminal case outcome. The TAKE IT DOWN Act requires platforms to remove reported NCII within 48 hours. StopNCII.org provides a free hashing service that allows participating platforms to automatically detect and block intimate images. For comprehensive removal across many platforms, IntimaShield offers professional services that handle the entire takedown process. IntimaShield files DMCA notices with platforms, escalates to hosting providers when platforms are unresponsive, and contacts payment processors to cut off revenue streams for non-compliant websites. North Carolina victims benefit from acting on both fronts simultaneously: pursuing felony charges through the courts while engaging professional removal services to eliminate the images from the internet as quickly as possible.