The nature and scope of laws that address image-based sexual abuse vary from country-to-country. Some countries, such as Canada and France, have introduced specific legislation to criminalize image-based sexual abuse. Elsewhere, as in India, image-based sexual abuse is criminalized under existing laws on voyeurism, privacy and information technology. In many contexts, such as in Bangladesh, pornography in general is banned, bringing image-based sexual abuse under the ambit of those laws, but potentially resulting in negative repercussions for survivors who consensually share images that the state deems ‘pornographic.’ 

In some jurisdictions, image-based sexual abuse is also a civil offence, for example under the tort of privacy or civil defamation, and victims may be entitled to compensation or damages for the harms suffered. To better understand the legislative framework around image-based sexual abuse, we have compiled the following country-specific factsheets which set out the criminal and civil legal remedies available to victims and what gaps exist in those laws and their implementation.