Understanding your options
StopNCII and Digital Dignity do different jobs
Both exist to protect you from image-based sexual abuse, but they work in different ways, at different moments. Here's a clear, honest look at how they compare, so you can choose what fits your situation.
Last reviewed: 7 July 2026
StopNCII helps block an image you already have. Digital Dignity helps you find the ones you don’t.
If you’ve been researching how to protect yourself, you’ve probably come across StopNCII — a free, well-established service backed by Meta and the Revenge Porn Helpline, and a genuinely good tool. We recommend it. But it’s built for one specific situation: stopping an intimate image you already have from being uploaded to platforms that partner with it. That leaves a gap. What about content that’s already online? Content you no longer have, or never had in the first place? That’s the gap Digital Dignity was built to close. Below, we explain the difference.
If reading this is bringing up a lot, you don’t have to continue right now. Digital First Aid has immediate support and next steps →
How Digital Dignity compares to StopNCII
 | StopNCII | |
|---|---|---|
| Searches by | Your face — finds content you never had | A file you provide and fingerprint |
| Finds deepfakes & content you never possessed | Yes | No |
| Ongoing search | Continuous, automated monitoring | One-time submission |
| Photo fingerprinting | Yes | Yes |
| Video fingerprinting | Content-based — survives re-encoding & clipping | Exact-file only — a re-upload can be missed |
| Where it searches | High-risk & grey-zone sites where content lands | Cooperating partner platforms |
Both tools are non-profit and both are worth knowing about. They’re strongest in different situations, and many people use both.
The differences, in plain language
Four ways the two tools work differently, and what each one means for you.
A one-time step, or an ongoing watch
StopNCII and Digital Dignity work at different moments:
- StopNCII is a single action: you submit your image once, and it's added to a blocklist. There's no ongoing search afterward.
- Digital Dignity keeps watch: we scan the web for you on a regular basis, so if something appears weeks or months from now, you don't have to rely on chance to find out.
What this means for you
You don't submit once and hope. We keep looking, so you're not the one endlessly searching.
You don't need to already have the image
StopNCII can only protect images you already have, because you have to hold the photo or video to submit it. But so much of the harm involves content you'll never have in your hands:
- a deepfake made without your knowledge
- a screenshot from a video call
- a private image leaked by someone else
Digital Dignity searches for you, your face, so we can help find content you never had, and never made. And if you don't have it, were never given it, or can't face opening it, that's exactly the situation we're built for.
What this means for you
Even if you've never seen the image, or it never truly existed until someone faked it, we can still look for it.
We search for you, not just for a file
The biggest difference is how the search works. StopNCII matches a specific file: you give it an image, it creates a fingerprint, and platforms look for that exact fingerprint. Digital Dignity searches using face recognition. We look for you, which is why we can find content you never had in your hands:
- images shared by someone else
- older content you no longer have
- deepfakes that were made without you
We also use content-fingerprinting, the same kind of technology StopNCII uses, and we do it better for video. StopNCII fingerprints photos this way, but for videos it looks for an exact copy of the original file, so a re-encoded or re-uploaded video can slip past it. We fingerprint the content of a video instead, so we can still recognise it after it's been shortened, re-compressed, or cut into a longer compilation, which is common on adult platforms.
What this means for you
Because we look for you, not one exact file, we can still recognise your videos after they've been shortened, re-compressed, or cut into a longer clip.
Where this content really ends up
StopNCII works with platforms that choose to partner with it, mostly large, mainstream sites that already work hard to filter intimate content. That's valuable. But a lot of non-consensual content lands somewhere else entirely:
- adult platforms
- forums
- grey-zone sites that don't cooperate with anyone
Digital Dignity searches exactly those places, the high-risk corners of the web where this content actually tends to appear.
What this means for you
We look where the content is most likely to be, not only where platforms have agreed to help.
You can use both
Many people use both, and that’s a completely reasonable choice. They cover different ground:
- StopNCII looks for a file you give it, and blocks it on major platforms.
- Digital Dignity looks for you, and watches the wider web for what slips through.
Built to be handled with care
- A non-profit NGO with no profit motive from your abuse
- Solidarity pricing (from €5.80/month, with a hardship rate)
- Reference photos are encrypted, stored in an isolated database, and never shared
- You can delete your data at any time, so you stay in control
- We confirm it’s really you before acting, and no identity is required to start
No system can guarantee 100% detection. Effectiveness depends on image quality, where content is posted, and other factors. We keep improving our scanning, and we’re honest about what we can and can’t promise.
Why choose Digital Dignity? →Not sure where to start? That’s okay.
If content is already out there, or you’re worried it might be, Digital Dignity can search for it continuously and guide you through removal, step by step. You don’t have to face this alone, and you don’t have to keep searching yourself.
Search for your images nowFAQs
Still weighing up StopNCII and Digital Dignity? These are the questions people ask most.
Send email →StopNCII lets you submit an image you already have so partner platforms can block it. We actively and continuously search the web for content featuring you, including images you don’t have, or never had, like deepfakes. StopNCII helps block an image you hold; we help you find the ones you don’t.
Many people do. StopNCII is free and effective at stopping a specific image from reaching major platforms. We’re built to find content that’s already out there in the wild. Using both is fine.
No. Because we search using face recognition, we can look for content even if you never had the image, including deepfakes or leaked material you never made. You only provide a reference photo of yourself so we know who to look for.
It does, but for videos it looks for an exact copy of the original file. Most sites re-compress or trim what’s uploaded, which changes the file, so a re-uploaded video can be missed. We match the content of a video, not just the exact file, so we can still recognise it after it’s been altered or cut into a longer clip.
Not at all. It’s a trusted, free service and a genuinely good first step for blocking an image you already have. We recommend it for that. We exist for the harder part: finding content that’s already been shared, especially on sites that don’t partner with anyone.