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18 U.S.C. § 2252C — Misleading words or digital images on the Internet

Verified against govinfo.gov as of June 20, 2026View official text on govinfo.gov
  1. (a)In GeneralWhoever knowingly embeds words or digital images into the source code of a website with the intent to deceive a person into viewing material constituting obscenity shall be fined under this title and imprisoned for not more than 10 years.
  2. (b)MinorsWhoever knowingly embeds words or digital images into the source code of a website with the intent to deceive a minor into viewing material harmful to minors on the Internet shall be fined under this title and imprisoned for not more than 20 years.
  3. (c)ConstructionFor the purposes of this section, a word or digital image that clearly indicates the sexual content of the site, such as “sex” or “porn”, is not misleading.
  4. (d)DefinitionsAs used in this section—
    1. (1)the terms “material that is harmful to minors” and “sex” have the meaning given such terms in section 2252B; and
    2. (2)the term “source code” means the combination of text and other characters comprising the content, both viewable and nonviewable, of a web page, including any website publishing language, programming language, protocol or functional content, as well as any successor languages or protocols.