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StatuteCriminal Code

Section 162.1 — Criminal Code: Publication, etc., of an intimate image without consent

Text of the provision Official document

Everyone who knowingly publishes, distributes, transmits, sells, makes available or advertises an intimate image of a person knowing that the person depicted in the image did not give their consent to that conduct, or being reckless as to whether or not that person gave their consent to that conduct, is guilty of an indictable offence and liable to imprisonment for a term of not more than five years; or of an offence punishable on summary conviction. In this section, intimate image means a visual recording of a person made by any means including a photographic, film or video recording, in which the person is nude, is exposing his or her genital organs or anal region or her breasts or is engaged in explicit sexual activity; in respect of which, at the time of the recording, there were circumstances that gave rise to a reasonable expectation of privacy;

and in respect of which the person depicted retains a reasonable expectation of privacy at the time the offence is committed. No person shall be convicted of an offence under this section if the conduct that forms the subject-matter of the charge serves the public good and does not extend beyond what serves the public good. For the purposes of subsection (3), it is a question of law whether the conduct serves the public good and whether there is evidence that the conduct alleged goes beyond what serves the public good, but it is a question of fact whether the conduct does or does not extend beyond what serves the public good; and the motives of an accused are irrelevant.

Official source: laws-lois.justice.gc.ca

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Statutory text from an official public source. Informational content — does not replace advice from a qualified lawyer.