Project Overview
Digital tools now make it easy to create and share realistic sexual images of someone without their consent. These images can be humiliating, harmful, and difficult to remove once they are shared.
While the non-consensual sharing of intimate images is not new, recent advances in synthetic image technology, commonly called “deepfakes,” have made the problem more widespread and urgent. These images are increasingly used to harass, extort, silence, or sexually exploit people, particularly women and girls.
Over the past decade, governments across Canada have passed laws to address the distribution of intimate images without consent. Some of these laws are broad enough to cover deepfakes, while others are not. Manitoba recently updated its civil law to explicitly include deepfakes, and the federal government has amended the Criminal Code through Bill C-16 to address sexualized deepfakes.
Ontario stands out as the only common law province without a civil statute dealing with the non-consensual creation, alteration and distribution of intimate images. This project considers how provincial legislation or policy could be modernized to respond to these harms.
Advisory Committee
An independent Advisory Committee is currently being established and its members will be announced once confirmed.
What Issues Are Being Looked At?
This project examines how a civil legal framework could address the creation, alteration, and distribution of intimate images without consent. This includes questions about who should be held responsible, how liability should be assessed, and whether protection should depend on a reasonable expectation of privacy.
We will also look at the kinds of remedies victims often need, such as orders to take down images, destroy existing images, or prevent future creation or distribution. A related question is how quickly and effectively these remedies can be provided.
Another key issue is process. The project will consider whether these cases should proceed through traditional courts or whether alternative options, such as a specialized tribunal or fast-track process, would be more effective.
Finally, the project will examine how the law should define core concepts such as “intimate image,” “deepfake,” “creation,” and “distribution.” These definitions will shape the scope of any legislation and must be clear enough to protect people from harm without being overly broad or vague.
Current Project Phase
The LCO announced this project in early 2026. The project is in early stages of development.
The LCO will publish a project Consultation Paper in 2026 and will widely distribute these materials to support a broad and inclusive public consultation process.
The LCO invites anyone with an interest in or information for the project to contact the project lead.
Project Lead and Contacts
The project lead is Susie Lindsay, Legal Counsel, Law Commission of Ontario. She can be contacted at slindsay@lco-cdo.org.
The LCO can be reached at LawCommission@lco-cdo.org or through the Contact page.