NCMEC Launches New Service That Can Help You “Take It Down”

The National Center for Missing & Exploited Children has created a powerful tool to help children regain control. Today, the nation’s leading child protection organization is announcing a new tool to combat child sexual exploitation and help kids remove their sexually explicit images from the internet. 

The groundbreaking platform, aptly named, Take It Down, is available now and allows users from around the world to submit a report that can help remove online nude, partially nude, or sexually explicit photos and videos depicting a child under 18 years old. Meta provided initial funding to build the infrastructure for the program that NCMEC launched at the end of December 2022. 

Since then, more than 200 cases have been submitted. 

“Having explicit content online can be scary and very traumatizing, especially for young people,” said Gavin Portnoy, vice president of Communications & Brand at NCMEC. “The adage of ‘you can’t take back what is already out there’ is something we want to change. The past does not define the future and help is available.” 

A new public service announcement, created by award winning ad agency, VCCP, focuses on the theme of moving forward. This new PSA will appear on platforms that kids frequent to ensure they are receiving the message directly. We cannot go back and change what happened, but we can help you move forward.

Take It Down works by assigning a unique digital fingerprint, called a hash value, to specific images or videos. When tech platforms sign up to participate, they are provided these hash values so they can detect and remove the imagery on their public or unencrypted sites and apps. This all happens without the image or video ever leaving a device or anyone viewing it.  

“We created this system because many children are facing these desperate situations,” said Michelle DeLaune, NCMEC’s president and CEO. “Our hope is that children become aware of this service, and they feel a sense of relief that tools exist to help take the images down. NCMEC is here to help.”  

What is Take It Down? 

Take It Down is a FREE service that helps tech companies remove sexually explicit images or videos depicting children under the age of 18.  

Who is it for? 

Take It Down is for people who want to regain control. It is for individuals depicted in nude, partially nude or sexually explicit images or videos before they were 18 years old that they believe were shared online.  

Users may remain anonymous while using the service.  

Participating platforms: 

Meta (Facebook & Instagram) 

MG Freesites (Pornhub, Mindgeek)  

OnlyFans   

Yubo 

For more information on Take It Down, visit our website here:  https://takeitdown.ncmec.org/