Crime and Policing Act 2026

99 Purported intimate image generators U.K.

(1) The Sexual Offences Act 2003 is amended as follows.

(2) After section 66H insert—

“66I Making or supplying purported intimate image generators

(1) A person commits an offence if the person—

(a) makes or adapts a thing, or

(b) supplies or offers to supply a thing,

for use as a generator of purported intimate images.

(2) A “generator of purported intimate images” is a thing for creating, or facilitating the creation of, purported intimate images of a person.

(3) A person makes, adapts, supplies, or offers to supply a thing for use as a generator of purported intimate images if a reasonable person (having regard to all the circumstances) would consider that they do so.

(4) It is a defence for a person charged with an offence under this section to prove that they took all reasonable steps to prevent the thing being used for creating, or facilitating the creation of, purported intimate images of a person without the person’s consent.

(5) A person who commits an offence under this section is liable—

(a) on summary conviction, to imprisonment for a term not exceeding the general limit in a magistrates’ court or a fine (or both);

(b) on conviction on indictment, to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 3 years or a fine (or both).

(6) Section 72(1) applies in relation to an act which, if done in England and Wales, would constitute an offence under this section as if references to a United Kingdom national included—

(a) a body incorporated under the law of any part of the United Kingdom, or

(b) an unincorporated association formed under the law of any part of the United Kingdom.

(7) In this section—

• “purported intimate image” of a person, and references to creating a purported intimate image of a person, have the same meaning as in section 66E;

• “thing” includes a program, information in electronic form and a service.

66J Section 66I: further defences

(1) It is a defence for a person charged with an offence under section 66I to prove that the person did the act which constituted the offence for the purposes of the prevention, detection or investigation of crime, or for the purposes of criminal proceedings, in any part of the world.

(2) It is a defence for a person charged with an offence under section 66I to prove that the person—

(a) was a member of the Security Service, the Secret Intelligence Service or GCHQ (a “security body”), and

(b) did the act which constituted the offence for the purposes of the exercise of any function of the security body.

(3) “GCHQ” has the meaning given by section 3 of the Intelligence Services Act 1994.

(4) It is a defence for a person charged with an offence under section 66I to prove that the person—

(a) was a member of OFCOM, was employed or engaged by OFCOM, or assisted OFCOM in the exercise of any of its online safety functions, and

(b) did the act which constituted the offence for the purposes of OFCOM’s exercise of any of its online safety functions.

(5) In subsection (4)—

(a) “OFCOM” means the Office of Communications;

(b) a reference to OFCOM’s “online safety functions” has the meaning given by section 235 of the Online Safety Act 2023.

66K Section 66I: application to internet service providers

(1) An internet service provider does not commit an offence under section 66I by—

(a) providing access to a communication network, or

(b) transmitting, in a communication network, information provided by a user, if the provider does not—

(i) initiate the transmission,

(ii) select the recipient of the transmission, or

(iii) select or modify the information contained in the transmission.

(2) The references in subsection (1) to providing access to, or transmitting information in, a communication network include storing the information transmitted so far as the storage—

(a) is automatic, intermediate and transient,

(b) is solely for the purpose of carrying out the transmission in the network, and

(c) is for no longer than is reasonably necessary for the transmission.

(3) An internet service provider does not commit an offence under section 66I by storing information provided by a user for transmission in a communication network if—

(a) the storage of the information—

(i) is automatic, intermediate and temporary, and

(ii) is solely for the purpose of making more efficient the onward transmission of the information to other users at their request, and

(b) the internet service provider—

(i) does not modify the information,

(ii) complies with any conditions attached to having access to the information, and

(iii) on knowing of a matter within subsection (4), promptly removes the information or disables access to it.

(4) The matters within this subsection are that—

(a) the information at the initial source of the transmission has been removed from the network,

(b) access to it has been disabled, or

(c) a court or administrative authority has ordered the removal from the network of, or the disablement of access to, the information.

(5) An internet service provider does not commit an offence under section 66I by storing information provided by a user who is not acting under the authority or control of the provider if—

(a) when the information was provided the provider did not know that it was, or contained, a generator of purported intimate images, and

(b) on knowing that the information was, or contained, a generator of purported intimate images, the provider promptly removed the information or disabled access to it.

(6) In this section—

• “generator of purported intimate images” has the same meaning as in section 66I;

• “internet service provider” means a provider of—

  (a)

  a service that is made available by means of the internet, or

  (b)

  a service that provides access to the internet;

• “user”, in relation to an internet service provider, means a user of a service provided by the internet service provider.

66L Liability for offence under section 66I committed by bodies

(1) This section applies where an offence under section 66I is committed by a body.

(2) If the offence is committed with the consent or connivance of—

(a) a relevant person in relation to the body, or

(b) a person purporting to act in the capacity of a relevant person in relation to the body,

the person (as well as the body) commits the offence and is liable to be proceeded against and punished accordingly.

(3) In this section—

• “body” means a body corporate, a partnership or an unincorporated association other than a partnership;

• “relevant person”, in relation to a body, means—

  (a)

  in the case of a body corporate other than one whose affairs are managed by its members, a director, manager, secretary or other similar officer of the body;

  (b)

  in the case of a limited liability partnership or other body corporate whose affairs are managed by its members, a member who exercises functions of management with respect to it;

  (c)

  in the case of a limited partnership, a general partner (within the meaning given by section 3 of the Limited Partnerships Act 1907);

  (d)

  in the case of any other partnership, a partner;

  (e)

  in the case of an unincorporated association other than a partnership, a person who exercises functions of management with respect to it.”

(3) In section 79(5) (meaning of references to image of a person), for “and 66G” substitute “, 66G and 66I”.

(4) In paragraph 1 of Schedule 2 (sexual offences for purposes of section 72), after paragraph (c) insert—

“(ca) an offence under section 66I;”.

(5) In Schedule 3 (sexual offences for purposes of Part 2), after paragraph 33B insert—

“33C An offence under section 66I of this Act (purported intimate image generators), if the offender is sentenced in respect of the offence to imprisonment for a term of at least 12 months.”

Commencement Information

I1 S. 99 not in force at Royal Assent, see s. 255(1)

I2 S. 99 in force at 29.6.2026 by S.I. 2026/689, reg. 2(1)(i)