Trump Signs Bill To Protect Young People From Sextortion And Revenge Porn

President Donald Trump signed the bipartisan “Take It Down Act” into law on Monday, surrounded by First Lady Melania Trump and lawmakers who helped advance the bill.

The “Take It Down Act” makes publishing non-consensual intimate imagery, real or AI-generated, a federal crime. It requires social media platforms like TikTok, Instagram, X, and Facebook to remove content that features explicit images or videos of minors, known as “child sexual abuse material,” or CSAM, or “revenge porn,” within 48 hours of the content being flagged.

President Donald J. Trump and First Lady Melania Trump in the Rose Garden for the signing of the Take It Down Act. ???????????? pic.twitter.com/lHYAVO5xTS

— The White House (@WhiteHouse) May 19, 2025

Mrs. Trump has been a fierce advocate for the “Take It Down Act,” encouraging lawmakers on both sides of the aisle to push the legislation forward. FLOTUS opened the signing with remarks about the bipartisan effort to protect Americans, especially children, before introducing President Trump.

.@FLOTUS gives remarks prior to the signing of the ‘Take It Down Act’ to protect children from online exploitation: “This legislation is a powerful step forward in our efforts to ensure that every American, especially young people, can feel better protected from their image or… pic.twitter.com/EJFVHppTi1

— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) May 19, 2025

Republican South Carolina Rep. Brandon Guffey, who was thanked by President Trump on Monday, worked with Texas Sen. Ted Cruz (R) on the legislation. Cruz and Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar, a Democrat, were the sponsors of the bill.

Tragically, Guffey’s 17-year-old son Gavin Guffey took his own life three years ago after he was the victim of an online sexual extortion scam — a growing trend the FBI has recently warned parents about.

I have posted before about the passing of TAKE IT DOWN and the roundtable with FLOTUS. On Friday, I received an invite to go to the White House for the signing on the bill and as I made plans, I found out that the other members of the original “Porch Caucus” will be in DC Monday… pic.twitter.com/Qr4518YEKu

— Brandon Guffey (@brandonguffeysc) May 13, 2025

Guffey told The Daily Wire on Monday that the law “will save so many teens from feeling the shame that my son faced.”

“In addition to having the tool to have the images taken down within 48 hours, the person posting can also face up to 3 years in prison,” the lawmaker continued. “With the evolution of criminals using AI and morphed images/videos, this will be the first bill to my knowledge to address Artificial Intelligence.”

“I’m so thankful for all of the coalitions behind this and the advocacy of the FLOTUS,” Guffey added. “The bravery of young teens such as Elliston and Francesca can’t be commended enough.”

Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images

Guffey told The Daily Wire last month that he wants social media companies to have protections stripped from them over their lack of action concerning CSAM material.

“I think the number one thing that we have to do is to remove Section 230, or revisit Section 230, which was written in 1996,” he told The Daily Wire. “It gives these companies — who are the richest companies since the inception of man — it absolves them from being sued. So we can sue them, but things get thrown out before discovery because they just say, ‘We’re not responsible for anything online because this is a public forum.’”

Guffey is currently suing Meta, the parent company of Instagram, over his son’s death. “I filed a suit directly on my own, not demanding money, but demanding change.”

Trump’s Department of Homeland Security is currently taking on the uptick in sexual extortion, or “sextortion,” cases against minors with its initiative Know2Protect. Recently, country star John Rich teamed up with the department to educate parents and teens about the issue.

Related: Dozens Of Teen Boys Take Their Own Lives As Online Sextortion Cases Spike