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What to do if…
you keep receiving unwanted explicit images and the sender will not stop

Produced and maintained by PanicStation.org Published: Last reviewed: Editorial policy USA guide

Short answer

Stop engaging with the sender, block and report the account or message on the platform, and tighten who can contact you. If there are threats, extortion, stalking, workplace involvement, or any child is involved, use the relevant reporting route without trying to investigate it yourself.

Do not do these things

  • Do not keep replying to make them understand; it can keep you exposed and may escalate the contact.
  • Do not forward the images to friends, coworkers, or group chats for advice.
  • Do not click unknown links, download attachments, or move to another app to sort it out.
  • Do not post the person’s information publicly as your first move; it can increase retaliation risk.
  • Do not delete everything before you decide whether you want a small record, especially if there are threats.
  • Do not investigate, negotiate, or share any sexual content involving a child or anyone who may be under 18.

What to do now

  1. Put the device face down for a moment and choose one immediate goal: stop more contact reaching you.
  2. Block the sender on the platform where the images arrived.
  3. Report the message, image, and profile using the platform’s harassment, sexual content, unsolicited nudity, or non-consensual intimate image reporting option.
  4. Change message settings so fewer people can reach you:
    • limit DMs to friends, followers, or contacts;
    • turn off message requests from unknown accounts if the platform allows it;
    • filter unknown senders or explicit-image requests;
    • temporarily make the account private if that helps stop new contact.
  5. If the sender returns on new accounts, report each new account and keep blocking rather than replying.
  6. If you can do it without having to keep looking at the images, save one small record: the sender’s handle, date and time, your “do not contact me again” message if you sent one, and any threats, coercion, payment demands, or attempts to move platforms.
  7. Put any screenshots in a folder you do not have to open often, or ask a trusted person to help store them without sharing them onward.
  8. If this is connected to work, use a workplace reporting route:
    • report to HR, a manager, a union representative, or the route named in your employer’s harassment policy;
    • keep your report in writing if you can;
    • ask how confidentiality and retaliation concerns will be handled.
  9. If the sender threatens you, stalks you, doxxes you, demands money, or says they will post or share sexual images, consider reporting to local law enforcement and the FBI’s IC3 portal.
  10. If you or someone else is in immediate danger, call 911.
  11. If any child or person who may be under 18 is involved, do not investigate or share the content. Report suspected online child exploitation to NCMEC’s CyberTipline, and call 911 if a child is in immediate danger.
  12. If this has left you shaken, contact a confidential sexual violence support service such as RAINN. You can ask for support without deciding whether to make a police report.

What can wait

  • You do not need to decide today whether this “counts” as a crime.
  • You do not need to decide today whether to make a formal police report.
  • You do not need to gather every message or keep reopening the images.
  • You do not need to confront the sender or prove that they meant harm.
  • You do not need to overhaul your whole online life right now; focus on stopping contact first.

Important reassurance

Unwanted explicit images can feel shocking, violating, disgusting, numbing, or frightening. That reaction makes sense. You do not have to handle it perfectly; reducing contact and preserving your options is enough for this moment.

Scope note

These are first steps only: stabilize, stop more contact, and preserve options. If the sender is someone you know, the behavior continues, it involves work, there are threats, or it feels like stalking or extortion, a specialist advocate, workplace adviser, attorney, or law enforcement contact may help you decide what to do next.

Important note

This guide is general information, not legal, medical, therapeutic, workplace, or professional advice. Laws, employer processes, and platform rules vary by state and by platform. It is still appropriate to block and report on the platform, seek confidential support, and decide later whether to involve an employer, lawyer, or law enforcement.

Additional Resources

Closely connected guides that may be useful during the same situation or its immediate aftermath.

About this guide

This guide was produced and is maintained by PanicStation.org using its published editorial process. Official and specialist sources are checked where relevant, and AI-assisted tools may be used for drafting, organisation, and consistency checks. The site operator remains responsible for publication, revision, and removal decisions.

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