“Intentionally exposing buttocks in public is a crime in Victoria”
Under Section 17(1)(d) of the Summary Offences Act 1966, as amended in 2016, any person who "behaves in a riotous, indecent, offensive or insulting manner" is guilty of an offense. The 2016 amendment specifically clarifies that behavior involving exposing one's anal or genital region—including mooning or streaking—constitutes indecent behavior under this provision.
While mooning and streaking had technically been illegal in Victoria under prior laws, the 2016 amendment to the Summary Offences Act was part of a comprehensive overhaul of sexual offense laws in Victoria. The update distinguished between pranks involving nudity (mooning) and acts of sexual exposure, establishing indecent exposure as a specific criminal offense.
Where the story gets it wrong
Some assume mooning would fall under Section 19 (sexual exposure), which only covers genital exposure. In fact, it is covered under Section 17 (obscene behaviour); mooning is explicitly cited as an example in Section 17(1A), which references the "anal or genital region," making buttocks exposure a clear offence.
Section 17(1)(d) of the Summary Offences Act 1966 (Vic) prohibits behaving in an "indecent offensive or insulting manner" in or near a public place. Section 17(1A) clarifies: "For the purposes of subsection (1)(d), behaviour that is indecent offensive or insulting includes behaviour that involves a person exposing (to any extent) the person's anal or genital region." The legislation provides "mooning or streaking" as an explicit example.
- Current status
- Actively Enforced
- Enacted
- July 1, 2016
- Penalty
- First offense: Up to 2 months imprisonment or 10 penalty units. Second offense: Up to 3 months imprisonment or 15 penalty units. Third or subsequent offense: Up to 6 months imprisonment or 25 penalty units. (Penalty unit values are indexed annually; as of 2025, approximately A$184.92 per unit)Imprisonment: 180 days