President Donald Trump signed the Take It Down Act on Monday, a bipartisan legislation that enacts stricter penalties for distributing nonconsensual specific photos, together with deepfakes and revenge porn.
The invoice criminalizes the publication of such photos, whether or not they’re genuine or AI-generated. Whoever publishes the pictures or movies can face legal penalties, together with fines, imprisonment, and restitution.
Below the brand new legislation, social media corporations and on-line platforms should take away such materials inside 48 hours of discover from the sufferer. The platforms additionally should take steps to delete duplicate content material.
Many states have already banned sexually specific deepfakes and revenge porn, however this would be the first time federal regulators step in to impose restrictions on web corporations.
“This would be the first-ever federal legislation to fight the distribution of specific, imagery posted with out topics’ consent,” Trump mentioned throughout a invoice signing occasion Monday on the White Home. “We is not going to tolerate on-line sexual exploitation.”
First Girl Melania Trump lobbied for the invoice, which was sponsored by Sens. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) and Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.). Cruz mentioned he was impressed to behave after listening to that Snapchat refused for almost a yr to take away an AI-generated deepfake of a 14-year-old woman.
Free speech advocates and digital rights teams have raised considerations, saying the legislation is just too broad and will result in censorship of authentic photos, like authorized pornography, in addition to authorities critics.
