If you find a suspected deepfake about you or someone you know, preserve a factual record before the post, account or messages disappear. If it is safe, save screenshots showing the surrounding page, copy the complete URL, record the account name, and note the date and time. Keep relevant messages, threats, payment demands and earlier report confirmations. Preserve any original digital file without editing it, store everything securely, and report every occurrence to the platform where it appears.
This record documents what you observed; it does not, by itself, prove who created the media, prove that it was manipulated, or guarantee that a court will admit it. Your safety comes first, and a trusted person, advocate, law-enforcement officer or qualified digital-forensics professional can help when the situation is distressing or technically complex.
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What evidence preservation can—and cannot—show
The FBI defines a deepfake as a broad range of AI- or machine-learning-generated or manipulated digital media, including images, video, audio and text. A saved copy can show what was available at a particular location and time. It can help establish the sequence of discovery, communications and reports. It cannot automatically identify the creator, establish the file’s authenticity, or settle whether a law was broken.
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1. Put safety and wellbeing first
Do not delay emergency help while collecting evidence. If there is an immediate threat of violence, stalking or self-harm, contact local emergency services. If the post includes extortion, threats to release intimate material or instructions to send money, avoid confronting the poster when that could increase risk.
Viewing sexual or humiliating material repeatedly can intensify distress. Ask a trusted friend, family member, advocate or attorney to perform the documentation while you remain away from the content. Tell the helper exactly what you want preserved and where the material appeared. They should not forward the content unnecessarily.
Use a private device and a connection you control when possible. If another person may monitor your device, do not save evidence where that person can access it. A separate, protected account or storage location may be safer than the device you normally use.
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Before links change, create a short factual note in plain language. Use your local date and time, and include the time zone if people in different regions are involved. Separate what you personally observed from what someone else told you.
- Who appears to have posted the material: display name, username, handle, profile URL and any linked account identifiers.
- Where it appeared: platform, group, page, channel, forum, direct message or website.
- When you found it and when each item was captured.
- What the post claimed and why it appears manipulated or unauthorized, without stating a conclusion you cannot establish.
- Whether the material appeared in more than one location, and the order in which you found those locations.
- Any threats, blackmail, payment demands, contact instructions or references to publishing additional material.
- Names of people who helped collect or receive the record.
Keep the account neutral. “At 14:10 UTC I opened this URL and saw a video using my name and profile photograph” is more useful than “The criminal uploaded a fake video.” A neutral description preserves observations without turning an assumption into a fact.
3. Capture the post and its surrounding context
Take screenshots that show more than the manipulated image itself. Include the page or post header, account name, visible handle, caption, date indicator, comments, surrounding navigation and the browser or app address where practical. Capture enough context that another person can understand what was displayed without guessing.
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Save the complete URL exactly as displayed. Shortened links, search-result links and profile links may not identify the individual post. If a platform uses a post ID, message ID or channel name, record that identifier too. Make a separate record for every copy: a repost on a second account is a different location even when the media is identical.
Preserve communications connected to the post. Capture direct messages, emails, text messages, comments, threats and payment requests with the sender’s identifier and timestamps. Do not crop away the information that ties a message to its sender or conversation. If a message can be exported through the service’s normal feature, retain the export as an additional copy rather than replacing screenshots.
| Record | What it preserves | Important qualification |
|---|---|---|
| Screenshot of the post and page | Visible text, image or video frame, account context and page layout at capture time | It may omit hidden metadata and does not prove who created the media. |
| Complete URL and post identifier | The location you visited and the specific item, when the service exposes one | A deleted, private or edited item may no longer open later. |
| Account name, handle and profile details | The identity label displayed by the service | Names and handles can be changed, reused or impersonated. |
| Messages, threats and payment demands | Communications and their apparent timing | Preserve the conversation context; do not infer the sender’s real-world identity. |
| Report receipt or case number | When and how you notified a platform and what response followed | A confirmation shows a report was submitted, not that the platform agreed with it. |
4. Preserve original digital files without altering them
If you already lawfully possess the original image, video, audio or document, keep that file in the form you received or downloaded it. Do not crop, annotate, filter, recompress, rename as a substitute for the original, or repeatedly convert the only copy. Editing can remove information that a later examiner might need.
Make a working copy when you need to blur a face for a support request, add notes or extract a short clip. Label it as a derivative copy and keep the untouched original separately. Do not create a montage that makes it impossible to tell which file came from which location.
Record basic file details without changing the file: the filename as received, file size, file type, the source location and the date and time of download. Operating systems may update a file’s ordinary “created” or “modified” dates when it is copied, so do not present those timestamps as proof of when the media was made.
If the material is sexual, especially if a child may be involved, do not download or redistribute it merely to preserve evidence. Follow child-safety reporting instructions and ask law enforcement or a specialist service how to provide information safely.
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Why screenshots are not enough
California Department of Justice guidance for law enforcement warns that printouts and screenshots do not include valuable metadata that may assist an investigation. A screenshot is still useful because it records visible context, but it is only one layer of preservation.
Depending on the service and the situation, additional information may exist in the original file, an ordinary platform export, a message attachment, a browser download record or the service’s own account data. Availability varies, and an ordinary user should not try to obtain restricted information such as IP addresses, server logs or hidden platform records. California guidance discusses items such as digital copies of social-media posts, archived content, IP addresses and geolocation as possible investigative evidence; those examples do not mean a private individual can lawfully collect all of them.
Internet data can be volatile. If formal investigation is likely, tell law enforcement promptly that the material may disappear and provide the URLs, account identifiers and capture times you recorded. Document the preservation method you used instead of claiming that a screenshot is a complete technical copy.
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A collection log makes the record understandable to someone who did not collect it. For each item, write an entry with:
- A sequential item number, such as
DF-001. - The source and complete URL or message location.
- The date, time and time zone observed.
- The device or account used to view it, without sharing passwords.
- What was saved: screenshot, downloaded file, message export or written note.
- The filename and storage location.
- The person who collected it and anyone who later received a copy.
- Any change made to a working copy, such as redaction or clipping.
Keep the log in a format that can be backed up and read without opening the suspected media. If another person helps, add their name and the date they received or returned a copy. This is practical documentation, not a guarantee of legal admissibility; formal cases may require procedures set by local law or an evidence specialist.
6. Store records securely
Use storage protected by a strong, unique password and, where available, multi-factor authentication. Limit access to people who need it. Keep at least one backup in a separate secure location, but do not upload intimate or illegal material to a public folder, shared link or service that automatically creates a gallery.
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An encrypted computer, encrypted external drive or removable USB drive can be used as a storage medium. No particular device is required, and a drive alone does not prove that a file has remained unchanged. Keep the untouched original separate from files prepared for sharing. Check that backups can be opened before deleting anything from the first location.
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Do not send sensitive files through ordinary group chats or email chains. When a support provider needs to see material, ask which secure submission method it accepts and send only what is necessary. Retain the submission confirmation in your log.
7. Report every occurrence and retain receipts
Report the post through the platform’s own safety or abuse channel. Save the confirmation page, case number, submission time and any later response. If the material appears on several accounts, pages or services, submit a separate report for each location and keep the records separate.
A search engine removal request is different from removing the source. Delisting a result can reduce visibility in search without deleting the image or video from the website hosting it. Report to the source platform as well as to any search service you use.
Platform forms and categories change. Select the category that accurately describes the conduct, such as impersonation, harassment, intimate-image abuse, extortion or non-consensual sexual material. Do not exaggerate facts to fit a category. If the service allows attachments, provide the minimum relevant evidence and avoid unnecessary redistribution.
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RAINN’s guidance focuses on sexual deepfakes and non-consensual intimate images. It recommends saving evidence if doing so is safe, using a trusted person when needed, and reporting directly to each platform. Its page maintains platform-specific reporting links and support information, which can change over time.
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RAINN also states that, under the TAKE IT DOWN Act, covered platforms must remove non-consensual intimate images after a valid or verified request within 48 hours. That statement is limited to the covered intimate-image context; it is not a universal 48-hour deadline for every deepfake, every platform or every country. If material has not been removed 48 hours after a platform report, RAINN directs users to the Federal Trade Commission. Keep your platform receipt so you can show when the reporting period began.
Do not assume that a sexual deepfake falls under the same rule as an ordinary parody, political manipulation or non-sexual impersonation. The applicable policy and law depend on the content, location, people involved and jurisdiction. A local victim-support organization or attorney can explain options without requiring you to publish the material again.
Threats, sextortion and federal reporting in the United States
The FBI’s June 5, 2023 public safety alert covers malicious explicit-image manipulation and sextortion schemes. It tells affected people to retain incident information and consider reporting to the Internet Crime Complaint Center, an FBI field office or the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children, as appropriate to the circumstances.
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Those routes are not a substitute for an emergency call when someone faces immediate danger. They also do not establish that every manipulated image meets the alert’s criteria. Provide the factual timeline, URLs, account identifiers, messages, payment demands and platform report receipts you preserved.
If a child may be involved
Stop collecting once you have enough information to identify the location and account. Do not download, copy, forward or repost sexual material involving a child. Do not send it to friends, moderators or a general support inbox. Use child-specific reporting guidance and tell the receiving authority that the material may involve a minor.
Preserve non-content details such as the URL, account name, timestamps and report confirmation when doing so is safe and lawful. Ask the relevant authority how it wants the material or device handled. A trusted adult can make reports while protecting the child from repeated exposure.
When professional help is appropriate
Formal digital-evidence collection can involve specialized tools, controlled handling, metadata interpretation and documentation that ordinary screenshots cannot provide. NISTIR 8387 describes preservation challenges for evidence handlers, and the National Institute of Justice’s first-responder guidance addresses digital-evidence procedures. Neither publication creates a universal consumer procedure or a platform deadline.
Consider contacting law enforcement or a qualified digital-forensics professional when the case involves threats, extortion, stalking, financial loss, a public figure, a workplace or school investigation, likely litigation, or a need to authenticate files. Ask what credentials, confidentiality terms and secure transfer methods the professional uses. Do not grant remote access to your accounts to an unknown person promising to “trace” the deepfake.
Common mistakes and safer alternatives
- Confronting the poster: This can prompt deletion, retaliation or further distribution. Preserve the record and report instead.
- Saving only a cropped image: It removes the account, URL and timing that give the image context. Capture the surrounding page and write down identifiers.
- Editing the only file: Cropping, filters and repeated conversions can discard useful information. Keep an untouched original and edit a copy.
- Assuming a screenshot proves fabrication: It shows what appeared on screen, not who made the media or whether it was altered. Describe observations and seek qualified analysis when needed.
- Reporting only one repost: Each location can disappear or remain online independently. Report and log every occurrence.
- Posting the evidence publicly to seek help: Public redistribution can increase harm and may violate law or platform rules. Use private, official reporting channels.
- Trusting a promised universal deadline: Removal rules differ by content, platform and jurisdiction. The 48-hour statement from RAINN is specifically tied to covered non-consensual intimate images under the TAKE IT DOWN Act.
A practical order of operations
- Move to a safe setting and involve a trusted person if viewing the material is distressing or risky.
- Write the neutral incident account, including discovery time, location and any threats or demands.
- Capture the post with surrounding context, complete URL, account identifiers and visible timestamps.
- Save relevant messages and previous report records, keeping each location distinct.
- Preserve any original file without editing; create labeled working copies only when necessary.
- Enter every item in a collection log and store the records in a restricted, backed-up location.
- Report each occurrence to its hosting platform and retain confirmations and responses.
- Escalate to emergency services, child-safety authorities, the FBI routes identified above, an advocate or a qualified digital-forensics professional when the facts warrant it.
The aim is a careful, limited record: what appeared, where and when it appeared, who seemed connected to it, what communications accompanied it, and what you did in response. That is more useful than a public repost or a single cropped screenshot, while keeping your safety and the privacy of everyone involved at the center.
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