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78B-6-2701
78B-6-2702
78B-6-2703
78B-6-2704
78B-6-2705
78B-6-2706
78B-6-2707
78B-6-2708
78B-6-2709
78B-6-2701
78B-6-2702
78B-6-2703
78B-6-2704
78B-6-2705
78B-6-2706
78B-6-2707
78B-6-2708
78B-6-2709
0
Uniform Intimate Images Amendments
2026 GENERAL SESSION
STATE OF UTAH
Chief Sponsor: Michael K. McKell
House Sponsor: Jordan D. Teuscher
LONG TITLE
General Description:
This bill enacts the Uniform Civil Remedies for Unauthorized Disclosure of Intimate
Images Act.
Highlighted Provisions:
This bill:
defines terms;
allows an individual to bring a civil action for unauthorized disclosure of an intimate
image;
provides exceptions to liability for a civil action for unauthorized disclosure of an
intimate image;
addresses measures a court may take to protect a plaintiff's privacy in a civil action for
unauthorized disclosure of an intimate image;
addresses remedies in a civil action for unauthorized disclosure of an intimate image;
provides a statute of limitations for a civil action for unauthorized disclosure of an
intimate image;
addresses construction of provisions; and
provides a severability clause.
Money Appropriated in this Bill:
None
Other Special Clauses:
None
Utah Code Sections Affected:
ENACTS:
78B-6-2701
, Utah Code Annotated 1953
78B-6-2702
, Utah Code Annotated 1953
78B-6-2703
, Utah Code Annotated 1953
78B-6-2704
, Utah Code Annotated 1953
78B-6-2705
, Utah Code Annotated 1953
78B-6-2706
, Utah Code Annotated 1953
78B-6-2707
, Utah Code Annotated 1953
78B-6-2708
, Utah Code Annotated 1953
78B-6-2709
, Utah Code Annotated 1953
Be it enacted by the Legislature of the state of Utah:
Section 1. Section
78B-6-2701
is enacted to read:
27. Uniform Civil Remedies for Unauthorized Disclosure of Intimate Images Act
78B-6-2701
. Definitions for part.
As used in this part:
(1)
"Consent" means affirmative, conscious, and voluntary authorization by an individual
with legal capacity to give authorization.
(2)
"Depicted individual" means an individual whose body is shown in whole or in part in
an intimate image.
(3)
"Disclose" means to transfer, publish, or distribute to another person.
(4)
"Disclosure" means transfer, publication, or distribution to another person.
(5)
"Identifiable" means recognizable by a person other than the depicted individual:
(a)
from an intimate image; or
(b)
from an intimate image and identifying characteristic displayed in connection with
the intimate image.
(6)
"Identifying characteristic" means information that may be used to identify a depicted
individual.
(7)
"Individual" means a human being.
(8)
"Intimate image" means a photograph, film, video recording, or other similar medium
that shows:
(a)
the uncovered genitals, pubic area, anus, or female post-pubescent nipple of a
depicted individual; or
(b)
a depicted individual engaging in or being subjected to sexual conduct.
(9)
"Person" means an individual, estate, business or nonprofit entity, public corporation,
government or governmental subdivision, agency, instrumentality, or other legal entity.
(10)
"Sexual conduct" includes:
(a)
masturbation;
(b)
genital, anal, or oral sex;
(c)
sexual penetration of, or with, an object;
(d)
bestiality; or
(e)
the transfer of semen onto a depicted individual.
Section 2. Section
78B-6-2702
is enacted to read:
78B-6-2702
. Civil action.
(1)
As used in this section:
(a)
"Harm" includes:
(i)
physical harm;
(ii)
economic harm; or
(iii)
emotional distress, whether or not accompanied by physical or economic harm.
(b)
"Private" means:
(i)
created or obtained under circumstances in which a depicted individual had a
reasonable expectation of privacy; or
(ii)
made accessible through:
(A)
theft, bribery, extortion, fraud, false pretenses, or voyeurism; or
(B)
exceeding authorized access to an account, message, file, device, resource, or
property.
(2)
Except as provided in Section
78B-6-2703
, a depicted individual who is identifiable and
who suffers harm from a person's intentional disclosure or threatened disclosure of an
intimate image that was private without the depicted individual's consent has a right of
action against the person if the person knew
:
(a)
the depicted individual did not consent to the disclosure;
(b)
the intimate image was private; and
(c)
the depicted individual was identifiable.
(3)
The following conduct by a depicted individual does not, by the conduct alone, establish
that the individual consented to the disclosure of the intimate image that is the subject of
an action under this part or that the individual lacked a reasonable expectation of privacy:
(a)
consent to creation of the image; or
(b)
previous consensual disclosure of the image.
(4)
A depicted individual who does not consent to the sexual conduct or uncovering of the
part of the body depicted in an intimate image of the individual retains a reasonable
expectation of privacy even if the image was created when the individual was in a public
place.
Section 3. Section
78B-6-2703
is enacted to read:
78B-6-2703
. Exceptions to liability.
(1)
As used in this section:
(a)
"Child" means an unemancipated individual who is younger than 18 years old.
(b)
"Online service provider" means an internet service provider, search engine, or cloud
service provider, including an affiliate or subsidiary of an internet service provider,
search engine, or cloud service provider.
(c)
"Parent" means an individual who has a parent-child relationship, as defined in
Section
81-5-102
, with the child.
(2)
A person is not liable under this part if the person proves that disclosure of, or a threat
to disclose, an intimate image was:
(a)
made in good faith as part of:
(i)
law enforcement activity;
(ii)
a legal proceeding; or
(iii)
medical education or treatment;
(b)
made in good faith in the reporting or investigation of:
(i)
unlawful conduct; or
(ii)
unsolicited and unwelcome conduct;
(c)
related to a matter of public concern or public interest; or
(d)
reasonably intended to assist the depicted individual.
(3)
Subject to Subsection
(4)
, a defendant who is a parent, legal guardian, or individual with
legal custody of a child is not liable under this part for a disclosure or threatened
disclosure of an intimate image of the child.
(4)
If a defendant asserts an exception to liability under Subsection
(3)
, the exception does
not apply if the plaintiff proves the disclosure was:
(a)
prohibited by law other than this part; or
(b)
made for the purpose of sexual arousal, sexual gratification, humiliation,
degradation, or monetary or commercial gain.
(5)
An online service provider is not liable under this part solely for providing access to,
transmitting, downloading, storing, or connecting a user to an intimate image on the
internet or on a facility, system, or network not under the online service provider's
control if the online service provider did not create the intimate image.
(6)
Disclosure of, or a threat to disclose, an intimate image is not a matter of public concern
or public interest solely because the depicted individual is a public figure.
Section 4. Section
78B-6-2704
is enacted to read:
78B-6-2704
. Plaintiff's privacy.
In an action under this part:
(1)
the court may exclude or redact from all pleadings and documents filed in the action
other identifying characteristics of the plaintiff;
(2)
a plaintiff to whom Subsection
(1)
applies shall file with the court and serve on the
defendant a confidential information form that includes the plaintiff's excluded or
redacted name and other identifying characteristics; and
(3)
the court may make further orders as necessary to protect the identity and privacy of a
plaintiff.
Section 5. Section
78B-6-2705
is enacted to read:
78B-6-2705
. Remedies.
(1)
In an action under this part, a prevailing plaintiff may recover:
(a)
the greater of:
(i)
economic and noneconomic damages proximately caused by the defendant's
disclosure or threatened disclosure, including damages for emotional distress,
whether or not accompanied by other damages; or
(ii)
statutory damages not to exceed $10,000 against each defendant found liable
under this part for all disclosures and threatened disclosures by the defendant of
which the plaintiff knew or reasonably should have known when filing the action
or which became known during the pendency of the action;
(b)
an amount equal to any monetary gain made by the defendant from disclosure of the
intimate image; and
(c)
punitive damages.
(2)
In determining the amount of statutory damages under Subsection
(1)(a)(ii)
, the trier of
fact shall consider:
(a)
the age of the parties at the time of the disclosure or threatened disclosure;
(b)
the number of disclosures or threatened disclosures made by the defendant;
(c)
the breadth of distribution of the image by the defendant; and
(d)
other exacerbating or mitigating factors.
(3)
In an action under this part, the court may award a prevailing plaintiff:
(a)
reasonable attorney fees and costs; and
(b)
additional relief, including injunctive relief.
(4)
This part does not affect a right or remedy available under a law of this state other than
this part.
Section 6. Section
78B-6-2706
is enacted to read:
78B-6-2706
. Statute of limitations.
(1)
An action under Section
78B-6-2702
for:
(a)
an unauthorized disclosure may not be brought later than four years after the day on
which the disclosure was discovered or should have been discovered with the
exercise of reasonable diligence; and
(b)
a threat to disclose may not be brought later than four years after the day on which
the threat was disclosed.
(2)
This section is subject to the tolling provisions described in Chapter 2, Part 1, General
Provisions and Special Actions.
Section 7. Section
78B-6-2707
is enacted to read:
78B-6-2707
. Construction.
(1)
This part shall be construed in accordance with the Communications Decency Act of
1996, 47 U.S.C. Sec. 230.
(2)
This part may not be construed to alter the law of this state on governmental immunity.
Section 8. Section
78B-6-2708
is enacted to read:
78B-6-2708
. Uniformity of application and construction.
In applying and construing this part, consideration must be given to the need to promote
uniformity of the law with respect to the uniform law's subject matter among states that enact
the uniform law.
Section 9. Section
78B-6-2709
is enacted to read:
78B-6-2709
. Severability.
If a provision of this part or the application of this part to a person or circumstance is
held invalid, the invalidity does not affect another provision or application that can be given
effect without the invalid provision or application.
Section 10.
Effective Date.
This bill takes effect on
May 6, 2026
.
3-11-26 9:42 AM