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

Page 531 TITLE 18—CRIMES AND CRIMINAL PROCEDURE § 2252C 1 So in original. Probably should be ‘‘physical’’. eign commerce or’’ after ‘‘has been mailed, or shipped or transported’’ and substituted ‘‘in or affecting inter- state’’ for ‘‘in interstate’’ in two places. Subsec. (a)(5)(A). Pub. L. 110–358, § 203(b)(1), inserted ‘‘, or knowingly accesses with intent to view,’’ after ‘‘possesses’’. Subsec. (a)(5)(B). Pub. L. 110–358, §§ 103(a)(4)(D), (b), 203(b)(2), inserted ‘‘, or knowingly accesses with intent to view,’’ after ‘‘possesses’’ and ‘‘using any means or fa- cility of interstate or foreign commerce or’’ after ‘‘has been mailed, or shipped or transported’’ and sub- stituted ‘‘in or affecting interstate’’ for ‘‘in interstate’’ in two places. Subsec. (a)(6)(A). Pub. L. 110–358, § 103(a)(4)(E), (b), in- serted ‘‘using any means or facility of interstate or for- eign commerce or’’ after ‘‘has been mailed, shipped, or transported’’ and substituted ‘‘in or affecting inter- state’’ for ‘‘in interstate’’. Subsec. (a)(6)(B). Pub. L. 110–358, § 103(b), substituted ‘‘in or affecting interstate’’ for ‘‘in interstate’’. Subsec. (a)(6)(C). Pub. L. 110–358, § 103(d), substituted ‘‘or any means or facility of interstate or foreign com- merce,’’ for ‘‘or by transmitting or causing to be trans- mitted any wire communication in interstate or for- eign commerce, including by computer,’’. Subsec. (a)(7). Pub. L. 110–401, § 304(a), added par. (7). Subsec. (b)(3). Pub. L. 110–401, § 304(b), added par. (3). 2006—Subsec. (b)(1). Pub. L. 109–248, § 206(b)(3), in- serted ‘‘section 1591,’’ after ‘‘this chapter,’’ and ‘‘, or sex trafficking of children’’ after ‘‘pornography’’. Subsec. (g). Pub. L. 109–248, § 701, added subsec. (g). 2003—Subsec. (a)(3). Pub. L. 108–21, § 503(1)(A), added par. (3) and struck out former par. (3) which read as fol- lows: ‘‘knowingly reproduces any child pornography for distribution through the mails, or in interstate or for- eign commerce by any means, including by computer;’’. Subsec. (a)(6). Pub. L. 108–21, § 503(1)(B)–(D), added par. (6). Subsec. (b)(1). Pub. L. 108–21, § 507, inserted ‘‘chapter 71,’’ before ‘‘chapter 109A,’’ and ‘‘or under section 920 of title 10 (article 120 of the Uniform Code of Military Jus- tice),’’ before ‘‘or under the laws’’. Pub. L. 108–21, § 503(2), which directed the substitution of ‘‘paragraph (1), (2), (3), (4), or (6)’’ for ‘‘paragraphs (1), (2), (3), or (4)’’, was executed by making the substi- tution for ‘‘paragraph (1), (2), (3), or (4)’’, to reflect the probable intent of Congress. Pub. L. 108–21, § 103(a)(1)(D), (b)(1)(E), substituted ‘‘20 years’’ for ‘‘15 years’’, ‘‘and imprisoned not less than 5 years and’’ for ‘‘or imprisoned’’, ‘‘15 years’’ for ‘‘5 years’’, and ‘‘40 years’’ for ‘‘30 years’’ and struck out ‘‘or both,’’ before ‘‘but, if such person’’. Subsec. (b)(2). Pub. L. 108–21, § 507, inserted ‘‘chapter 71,’’ before ‘‘chapter 109A,’’ and ‘‘or under section 920 of title 10 (article 120 of the Uniform Code of Military Jus- tice),’’ before ‘‘or under the laws’’. Pub. L. 108–21, § 103(a)(1)(E), (F), substituted ‘‘more than 10 years’’ for ‘‘more than 5 years’’, ‘‘less than 10 years’’ for ‘‘less than 2 years’’, and ‘‘20 years’’ for ‘‘10 years’’. Subsec. (c). Pub. L. 108–21, § 502(d), amended subsec. (c) generally. Prior to amendment, subsec. (c) read as follows: ‘‘It shall be an affirmative defense to a charge of violating paragraph (1), (2), (3), or (4) of subsection (a) that— ‘‘(1) the alleged child pornography was produced using an actual person or persons engaging in sexu- ally explicit conduct; ‘‘(2) each such person was an adult at the time the material was produced; and ‘‘(3) the defendant did not advertise, promote, present, describe, or distribute the material in such a manner as to convey the impression that it is or con- tains a visual depiction of a minor engaging in sexu- ally explicit conduct.’’ Subsec. (e). Pub. L. 108–21, § 505, added subsec. (e). Subsec. (f). Pub. L. 108–21, § 510, added subsec. (f). 2002—Subsecs. (b)(1), (c). Pub. L. 107–273 substituted ‘‘paragraph’’ for ‘‘paragraphs’’. 1998—Subsec. (a)(5)(A), (B). Pub. L. 105–314, § 203(b)(1), substituted ‘‘an image’’ for ‘‘3 or more images’’. Subsec. (b). Pub. L. 105–314, § 202(b), substituted ‘‘, chapter 109A, or chapter 117’’ for ‘‘or chapter 109A’’ in pars. (1) and (2) and substituted ‘‘aggravated sexual abuse, sexual abuse, or abusive sexual conduct involv- ing a minor or ward, or the production, possession, re- ceipt, mailing, sale, distribution, shipment, or trans- portation of child pornography’’ for ‘‘the possession of child pornography’’ in par. (2). Subsec. (d). Pub. L. 105–314, § 203(b)(2), added subsec. (d). Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries EFFECTIVE DATE OF 2009 AMENDMENT Amendment by Pub. L. 111–16 effective Dec. 1, 2009, see section 7 of Pub. L. 111–16, set out as a note under section 109 of Title 11, Bankruptcy. § 2252B. Misleading domain names on the Inter- net (a) Whoever knowingly uses a misleading do- main name on the Internet with the intent to deceive a person into viewing material consti- tuting obscenity shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than 2 years, or both. (b) Whoever knowingly uses a misleading do- main name on the Internet with the intent to deceive a minor into viewing material that is harmful to minors on the Internet shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than 10 years, or both. (c) For the purposes of this section, a domain name that includes a word or words to indicate the sexual content of the site, such as ‘‘sex’’ or ‘‘porn’’, is not misleading. (d) For the purposes of this section, the term ‘‘material that is harmful to minors’’ means any communication, consisting of nudity, sex, or ex- cretion, that, taken as a whole and with ref- erence to its context— (1) predominantly appeals to a prurient in- terest of minors; (2) is patently offensive to prevailing stand- ards in the adult community as a whole with respect to what is suitable material for mi- nors; and (3) lacks serious literary, artistic, political, or scientific value for minors. (e) For the purposes of subsection (d), the term ‘‘sex’’ means acts of masturbation, sexual inter- course, or physcial 1 contact with a person’s genitals, or the condition of human male or fe- male genitals when in a state of sexual stimula- tion or arousal. (Added Pub. L. 108–21, title V, § 521(a), Apr. 30, 2003, 117 Stat. 686; amended Pub. L. 109–248, title II, § 206(b)(4), July 27, 2006, 120 Stat. 614.) Editorial Notes AMENDMENTS 2006—Subsec. (b). Pub. L. 109–248 substituted ‘‘10 years’’ for ‘‘4 years’’. § 2252C. Misleading words or digital images on the Internet (a) IN GENERAL.—Whoever knowingly embeds words or digital images into the source code of a website with the intent to deceive a person Page 532 TITLE 18—CRIMES AND CRIMINAL PROCEDURE § 2253 1 So in original. The extra comma probably should follow ‘‘2260 of this chapter’’. 2 So in original. Probably should be ‘‘2251A, 2252,’’. 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 im- prisoned for not more than 20 years. (c) CONSTRUCTION.—For the purposes of this section, a word or digital image that clearly in- dicates the sexual content of the site, such as ‘‘sex’’ or ‘‘porn’’, is not misleading. (d) DEFINITIONS.—As used in this section— (1) the terms ‘‘material that is harmful to minors’’ and ‘‘sex’’ have the meaning given such terms in section 2252B; and (2) the term ‘‘source code’’ means the com- bination of text and other characters com- prising 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. (Added Pub. L. 109–248, title VII, § 703(a), July 27, 2006, 120 Stat. 648.) § 2253. Criminal forfeiture (a) PROPERTY SUBJECT TO CRIMINAL FOR- FEITURE.—A person who is convicted of an of- fense under this chapter involving a visual de- piction described in section 2251, 2251A, 2252, 2252A, or 2260 of this chapter or who is convicted of an offense under section 2252B of this chap- ter,,1 or who is convicted of an offense under chapter 109A, shall forfeit to the United States such person’s interest in— (1) any visual depiction described in section 2251, 2251A, or 2252 2 2252A, 2252B, or 2260 of this chapter, or any book, magazine, periodical, film, videotape, or other matter which con- tains any such visual depiction, which was produced, transported, mailed, shipped or re- ceived in violation of this chapter; (2) any property, real or personal, consti- tuting or traceable to gross profits or other proceeds obtained from such offense; and (3) any property, real or personal, used or in- tended to be used to commit or to promote the commission of such offense or any property traceable to such property. (b) Section 413 of the Controlled Substances Act (21 U.S.C. 853) with the exception of sub- sections (a) and (d), applies to the criminal for- feiture of property pursuant to subsection (a). (Added Pub. L. 98–292, § 6, May 21, 1984, 98 Stat. 205; amended Pub. L. 100–690, title VII, § 7522(c), Nov. 18, 1988, 102 Stat. 4494; Pub. L. 101–647, title XXXV, § 3564, Nov. 29, 1990, 104 Stat. 4928; Pub. L. 103–322, title XXXIII, § 330011(m)(1), Sept. 13, 1994, 108 Stat. 2145; Pub. L. 105–314, title VI, § 602, Oct. 30, 1998, 112 Stat. 2982; Pub. L. 109–248, title V, § 505(b), (c), July 27, 2006, 120 Stat. 630.) Editorial Notes PRIOR PROVISIONS A prior section 2253 was redesignated section 2256 of this title. AMENDMENTS 2006—Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 109–248, § 505(b)(1), inserted ‘‘or who is convicted of an offense under section 2252B of this chapter,’’ after ‘‘2260 of this chapter’’ and sub- stituted ‘‘an offense under chapter 109A’’ for ‘‘an of- fense under section 2421, 2422, or 2423 of chapter 117’’ in introductory provisions. Subsec. (a)(1). Pub. L. 109–248, § 505(b)(2), inserted ‘‘2252A, 2252B, or 2260’’ after ‘‘2252’’. Subsec. (a)(3). Pub. L. 109–248, § 505(b)(3), inserted ‘‘or any property traceable to such property’’ before period at end. Subsecs. (b) to (o). Pub. L. 109–248, § 505(c), added sub- sec. (b) and struck out former subsecs. (b) to (o) which related, respectively, to third party transfers, protec- tive orders, warrant of seizure, order of forfeiture, exe- cution of order, disposition of property, authority of Attorney General, applicability of civil forfeiture pro- visions, bar on intervention, jurisdiction to enter or- ders, depositions, third party interests, construction of section, and substitute assets. 1998—Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 105–314 substituted ‘‘2252, 2252A, or 2260 of this chapter, or who is convicted of an offense under section 2421, 2422, or 2423 of chapter 117,’’ for ‘‘or 2252 of this chapter’’. 1994—Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 103–322, § 330011(m)(1), amended directory language of Pub. L. 101–647, § 3564(1). See 1990 Amendment note below. 1990—Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 101–647, § 3564(1), as amended by Pub. L. 103–322, § 330011(m)(1), substituted ‘‘section 2251’’ for ‘‘sections 2251’’ in introductory provisions and in par. (1). Subsec. (h)(4). Pub. L. 101–647, § 3564(2), substituted ‘‘under section 616 of the Tariff Act of 1930’’ for ‘‘in ac- cordance with the provisions of section 1616, title 19, United States Code’’. 1988—Pub. L. 100–690 amended section generally, sub- stituting subsecs. (a) to (o) for former subsecs. (a) to (d). Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries EFFECTIVE DATE OF 1994 AMENDMENT Pub. L. 103–322, title XXXIII, § 330011(m), Sept. 13, 1994, 108 Stat. 2145, provided that the amendment made by that section is effective as of Nov. 29, 1990. § 2254. Civil forfeiture Any property subject to forfeiture pursuant to section 2253 may be forfeited to the United States in a civil case in accordance with the pro- cedures set forth in chapter 46. (Added Pub. L. 98–292, § 6, May 21, 1984, 98 Stat. 205; amended Pub. L. 99–500, § 101(m) [title II, § 201(a), (c)], Oct. 18, 1986, 100 Stat. 1783–308, 1783–314, and Pub. L. 99–591, § 101(m) [title II, § 201(a), (c)], Oct. 30, 1986, 100 Stat. 3341–308, 3341–314; Pub. L. 100–690, title VII, § 7522(c), Nov. 18, 1988, 102 Stat. 4498; Pub. L. 101–647, title XX, § 2003, title XXXV, § 3565, Nov. 29, 1990, 104 Stat. 4855, 4928; Pub. L. 103–322, title XXXIII, § 330011(m)(2), Sept. 13, 1994, 108 Stat. 2145; Pub. L. 105–314, title VI, § 603, Oct. 30, 1998, 112 Stat. 2982; Pub. L. 106–185, § 2(c)(4), Apr. 25, 2000, 114 Stat. 211; Pub. L. 107–273, div. B, title IV, § 4003(a)(6), Nov. 2, 2002, 116 Stat. 1811; Pub. L. 109–248, title V, § 505(d), July 27, 2006, 120 Stat. 630.)