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Melbourne Image-Based & Online Offence Lawyers
Image-based abuse and online sex offences can carry severe consequences, including imprisonment, sex offender registration and lasting reputational harm.
Lauren Tye personally represents clients charged with intimate image, carriage service and child abuse material offences in Victorian and federal courts.
Available 24/7 for urgent matters. Confidential advice. No obligation.
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Years Criminal Defence Experience
Image-based and online sex offences are investigated quickly and prosecuted seriously. Devices, accounts and messages may be seized early, and your response in the first hours can affect the entire case.
Lauren Tye advises clients from investigation through to trial or sentence, protecting their legal position, privacy and reputation wherever possible.
Lauren Tye represents clients charged with serious image-based and online sexual offences in Victorian and Commonwealth courts.
Allegations of sharing an intimate image without consent, including by text, social media, messaging apps or cloud links.
Allegations of threatening to release an intimate image, often arising from relationship breakdowns, disputes or alleged extortion.
Allegations of creating, capturing, altering or generating intimate images without consent, including AI-generated or manipulated images.
Federal charges involving messages, calls, posts or online contact alleged to be menacing, harassing or offensive.
Commonwealth allegations involving sexual material sent online or by phone without the other person's consent.
Charges involving alleged observation of a person's genital or anal region without consent.
The tables below outline maximum penalties for selected adult Victorian and Commonwealth image-based and online sexual material offences, including AI-generated or altered deepfake material. Outcomes depend on the alleged conduct, the evidence, prior history and the court hearing the matter.
| Charge | Legislation | Max Penalty | Typical Court |
|---|---|---|---|
| Victorian Image-Based & Observation Offences | |||
| Producing Intimate Image (incl. digitally created images or deepfakes) | Crimes Act 1958 (Vic), s 53R | 3 years | Magistrates' / County Court |
| Distributing Intimate Image | Crimes Act 1958 (Vic), s 53S | 3 years | Magistrates' / County Court |
| Threat to Distribute Intimate Image | Crimes Act 1958 (Vic), s 53T | 3 years | Magistrates' / County Court |
| Observation of Genital or Anal Region (Using a Device) | Summary Offences Act 1966 (Vic), s 41A | 3 months | Magistrates' Court |
Crimes Act 1958 (Vic), s 53R
3 years
Magistrates' / County Court
Crimes Act 1958 (Vic), s 53S
3 years
Magistrates' / County Court
Crimes Act 1958 (Vic), s 53T
3 years
Magistrates' / County Court
Summary Offences Act 1966 (Vic), s 41A
3 months
Magistrates' Court
| Charge | Legislation | Max Penalty | Typical Court |
|---|---|---|---|
| Commonwealth Online Sexual Material Offences | |||
| Use Carriage Service to Menace, Harass or Cause Offence | Criminal Code Act 1995 (Cth), s 474.17 | 5 years | Magistrates' / County Court |
| Transmit Sexual Material Without Consent (incl. deepfake material) | Criminal Code Act 1995 (Cth), s 474.17A | 6 years | Magistrates' / County Court |
| Aggravated Transmission of Sexual Material Without Consent (incl. where the accused created or altered the material) | Criminal Code Act 1995 (Cth), s 474.17AA | 7 years | Magistrates' / County Court |
Criminal Code Act 1995 (Cth), s 474.17
5 years
Magistrates' / County Court
Criminal Code Act 1995 (Cth), s 474.17A
6 years
Magistrates' / County Court
Criminal Code Act 1995 (Cth), s 474.17AA
7 years
Magistrates' / County Court
“Typical Court” is a practical guide only.
This is general information only and does not constitute legal advice. Penalties and procedures change — for advice about your specific matter, contact Lauren.
Real outcomes achieved through strategic defence, careful preparation, and experienced advocacy.
Client charged with distributing an intimate image following a relationship breakdown. Lauren obtained the full brief, identified consent and context issues, and made detailed written representations to police prosecutions.
Client charged with using a carriage service to menace following a series of messages sent during a personal dispute. Lauren prepared psychological material and supporting references and ran a focused plea.
Every case depends on its own facts and circumstances. Past outcomes do not guarantee future results.
If police contact you, seize a device, execute a warrant or ask you to attend an interview, your first steps can affect the entire case.
Be polite. Provide your basic details if required, but do not answer questions about the allegation until you have spoken with a lawyer. Anything you say may be used in evidence.
Do not delete messages, images, accounts, apps or search history. Deletion can be recoverable and may lead to further allegations. Preserve everything.
Do not call, message, approach or contact the complainant through someone else. Contact may be treated as harassment, witness interference or a breach of bail or an order.
Keep full message threads, dates, screenshots, account records and surrounding communications. Context can be critical in image-based and online offence cases.
Police may request, and in some cases compel, access to phones, computers or accounts. Get legal advice before consenting or providing passwords.
Lauren can advise you before an interview, after a device seizure, or at any stage of the investigation. For urgent advice, call 0451 877 714.
Early legal advice can affect what is charged, what evidence is relied on, and how the matter is resolved. Lauren Tye personally reviews the police summary, digital material, surrounding messages and full context before advising on strategy.
Where appropriate, she prepares targeted representations seeking withdrawal, diversion, charge negotiation or resolution without conviction. If the matter proceeds, Lauren provides careful advocacy at contest mention, committal, trial or sentence.
Early advice can shape what is charged, what evidence is relied on and how the matter is resolved. Here is what happens next and how Lauren Tye protects your position from the start.
Police may contact you for an interview, execute a search warrant, seize devices or charge you on summons. A charge is not a conviction, and how you respond at this stage can affect the entire case.
Before any interview, device handover or password request, get advice. Anything you say or provide can shape the brief. Early intervention often preserves options that are lost quickly.
Lauren examines the police summary, messages, account records, forensic device material and surrounding context — identifying weaknesses, defences and opportunities to negotiate.
Where appropriate, Lauren makes targeted representations seeking withdrawal, diversion, charge negotiation or resolution without conviction, and prepares the matter for hearing if it proceeds.
Lauren appears at contest mention, committal, trial or sentence in the Magistrates' or County Court, and advises on registration, reporting and reputational consequences throughout.
Available 24/7 including nights, weekends, and public holidays.
All enquiries are strictly confidential.
Direct access to your lawyer, not a call centre or junior associate.
Call Lauren directly on nights, weekends, and public holidays.
Melbourne Magistrates' Court, County Court, Supreme Court, and regional Victoria.
Your initial consultation is free. All enquiries are strictly confidential.
Most adult intimate image offences are prosecuted under the Crimes Act 1958 (Vic). Online conduct may also attract Commonwealth charges under the Criminal Code Act 1995 (Cth), particularly where a phone, internet service, messaging app or social media platform is involved.
Registration depends on the charge, the facts, the sentence and whether any registration order is made. Lauren can advise on registration and reporting risks before any plea is entered.
In some cases, yes. A matter may be withdrawn after representations, resolved through diversion, or finalised on a plea without conviction. The available outcome depends on the evidence, the charge and the material placed before the court.
As early as possible — ideally before any police interview, device access, password request or account handover. Early advice can protect your position and preserve options that may be lost quickly.
Do not answer questions about the allegation until you have legal advice. Be polite, provide your details if required, and contact Lauren before any interview, device access or password request.
An intimate image can include sexual activity, private body areas, or an image made to appear intimate, including digitally created or altered images. Victorian intimate-image offences are dealt with under the Crimes Act 1958 (Vic).
Yes. Victorian law can capture digitally created, altered or manipulated intimate images. Commonwealth law also captures sexual material created or altered using technology, including AI-generated deepfakes.
Consent is often central. The issue is whether there was consent to the particular image being distributed, in the way it was distributed, at the relevant time.
It is a Commonwealth offence involving use of a phone, internet service, messaging app, email or social media in a way alleged to be menacing, harassing or offensive.
This involves allegations that sexual material was sent, posted or shared using a carriage service without the other person’s consent, including through phones, messaging apps or online platforms.
Most criminal cases are heard in open court, but suppression or non-publication issues may arise in some matters. Lauren can advise whether privacy protections should be considered.
Police may request access, seize devices or seek orders requiring assistance. Get legal advice before consenting, providing passwords or answering questions about accounts.
Yes. The same alleged conduct may lead to Victorian intimate-image charges and Commonwealth carriage service charges.
Full message threads, dates, screenshots, account records, surrounding communications and evidence of consent or context can be important.
In some cases, yes. A matter may be withdrawn after representations, resolved by diversion, or finalised without conviction depending on the charge, evidence and supporting material.
Registration depends on the charge, facts, sentence and whether any registration order applies. Lauren can advise on registration risk before any plea is entered.
As early as possible — ideally before speaking to police, handing over devices, giving passwords or attending an interview.
This information is general only and not legal advice. If you need advice about your situation, contact Lauren directly.
Most Victorian image-based offences are heard in the Magistrates’ Court. Commonwealth carriage service offences often start there too, although more serious or aggravated matters may proceed to the County Court. The Magistrates’ Court hears summary and some indictable offences, while the County Court hears indictable offences under Victorian and Commonwealth law.
Lauren Tye appears in both jurisdictions across metropolitan Melbourne and regional Victoria.
Lauren Tye appears in Magistrates’ Courts, the County Court and the Supreme Court of Victoria for image-based and online offence matters.
Other practice areas: Traffic & Driving Offences · Drug Offences · Family Violence
