Glossary
Words, in plain language
The terms you will see on this site and in the law, explained without jargon. You do not need to know any of these to get help.
- NCII (non-consensual intimate imagery)
- Sharing, or threatening to share, an intimate image or video of a person without their consent.
- Consent
- A clear, freely given yes. Sending an image to one person is not consent for anyone to share it further.
- Deepfake
- An image or video made or altered by AI to look like a real person, including fake nudes.
- Morphing
- Editing an ordinary photo of someone to look sexual or compromising.
- Sextortion
- Threatening to share someone's intimate images unless they pay money or send more content.
- Doxxing
- Publishing someone's private details, such as their address or phone number, to harass or endanger them.
- Impersonation
- Creating a fake account or profile that pretends to be someone else.
- Hash or fingerprint (PDQ)
- A short code that can represent an image without being the image. Adults can generate a fingerprint on their device and submit it with a case; matching depends on participating platforms.
- Takedown notice
- A formal request asking a platform to remove specific content, with the legal basis for it.
- Intermediary
- A company that hosts or carries other people's content, such as a social media platform or website host.
- Grievance officer
- The person an Indian platform must name to receive and act on complaints from users.
- IT Rules 2021, Rule 3(2)(b)
- The Indian rule that requires platforms to act on complaints about non-consensual intimate content within a set time.
- MeitY NCII SOP
- A government standard operating procedure that sets out how NCII complaints should be handled in India.
- NCRP
- The National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal (cybercrime.gov.in), where you can report cybercrime, including a dedicated path for crimes against women and children.
- De-indexing
- Asking a search engine to stop showing a page in its results. The page may still exist, but it becomes far harder to find.
- POCSO
- The Indian law protecting children from sexual offences. Anything involving a person under 18 follows this path, not the adult flow.