Title 18, Crimes and Criminal ProcedureRelease 119-110

§2252C Misleading Words or Digital Images on the Internet

Title 18 › PART I — CRIMES › CHAPTER 110 — SEXUAL EXPLOITATION AND OTHER ABUSE OF CHILDREN › § 2252C

Last updated Sep 22, 2026|Official source

Summary

It is a crime to knowingly put words or digital images into a website’s source code to trick someone into seeing obscene content. The penalty is a fine and up to 10 years in prison, or up to 20 years if the person being deceived is a minor. Words that plainly show sexual content, like "sex" or "porn," are not misleading. "Material harmful to minors" and "sex" have legal definitions elsewhere. "Source code" means the visible and hidden text and characters that make a web page work, including its programming languages and protocols.

Full Legal Text

Title 18, §2252C

Crimes and Criminal Procedure, Source: USLM XML via OLRC

(a)In General.—

Whoever 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.

(b)Minors.—

Whoever 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.

(c)Construction.—

For 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.

(d)Definitions.—

As used in this section

(1)

(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.

Reference

Citations & Metadata

Citation

18 U.S.C. § 2252C

Title 18, Crimes and Criminal Procedure

Last Updated

Sep 22, 2026

Release point: 119-110