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Congress·In Committee·3 months ago

Stop Sextortion Act Would Make Threatening to Share Child Abuse Images a Federal Crime

Also known as: Stop Sextortion Act

Legislative Progress

✓ Filed
Review
Senate
House
President

Impacts

Negative Impacts(1)
Criminal Record
Hurts
Positive Impacts(2)
Child Tax Credit
Helps
Student
Helps

Key Points

  • Makes it a federal crime to threaten to share child sexual abuse images to scare, pressure, or extort someone.
  • Covers situations where the person making the threat does not actually have the images, as long as they threaten to distribute them.
  • Adds extra punishment in certain child exploitation and extortion-related crimes when child sexual abuse material is used to intimidate, coerce, extort, or cause major emotional harm.
  • Raises maximum prison time by 10 years for certain offenses when they involve using child sexual abuse material to threaten or control a victim.
  • Aims to give law enforcement clearer tools to go after sextortion schemes that target children and teens, including online threats.
Criminal JusticeCivil RightsConsumer Protection

Milestones

2 milestones2 actions
Dec 9, 2025Senate

Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary.

Dec 9, 2025

Introduced in Senate

What Happens Next

Projected impacts based on AI analysis

Right after the bill is signed into law and takes effect

Federal agencies and prosecutors begin using the new “threat to distribute” child sexual abuse image charges once the law is in effect.

Victims (and parents) may see faster, clearer law enforcement action even when the offender threatened to share images but did not actually send them.

As soon as prosecutors start applying the new statute to incoming cases

Cases involving sextortion threats where no real image existed can still be charged under the new rule.

People who were threatened with fake images still have a stronger legal path to report and stop the blackmail.

For offenses charged after the law takes effect

Maximum prison terms increase by 10 years for certain covered crimes when child pornography is knowingly used to intimidate, coerce, extort, or cause major emotional distress.

If someone is convicted in these situations, sentencing exposure is higher, which can change plea deals and how seriously cases are pursued.

Related News

5 articles
Florida Politics·about 2 months ago

House passes Laurel Lee legislation criminalizing 'sextortion'

The Combating Online Predators (COP) Act (HR 6719) cleared the chamber on a voice vote. If passed and signed, it will for the first time explicitly criminalize threats to distribute child sex abuse materials, closing a critical gap to protect children and deliver justice for victims.

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NewsNation·21 days ago

How much will sextortion bill give parents and children relief in the future?

Lawmakers and parents are pushing the 'Combating Online Predators Act' and the 'Stop Sextortion Act' to help criminalize child sextortion after reports of the crime increased 7200% in recent years, leading to tragic outcomes for victims like 17-year-old James Woods.

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Floridian Press·2 months ago

Laurel Lee’s Combating Online Predators Act Passes Republican House Judiciary Committee

The Combating Online Predators Act strengthens federal law by explicitly criminalizing threats to distribute child sexual abuse material (CSAM), also known as sextortion. Rep. Lee asserts that current laws fail to explicitly cover threats, allowing offenders to evade accountability.

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Source Information

Document Type

Congressional Bill

Official Title

Stop Sextortion Act

Bill NumberS 3398
Congress119th Congress
ChamberSenate
Latest ActionRead twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary.

Sponsor

Cosponsors

(10)
D: 3R: 7

Analysis generated by AI. While we strive for accuracy, this should not be considered legal or professional advice. Always verify information with official government sources.