The UK government has announced new legislation that will make the creation and distribution of sexually explicit “deepfakes” a criminal offence. This bold move aims to address the alarming rise in the use of AI technology to manipulate images and videos, often targeting women and girls with malicious intent.
Deepfakes, which are digital media created by artificial intelligence to convincingly alter videos, photos, or audio clips, have become a tool for harassment, with perpetrators superimposing someone’s likeness onto explicit content. While laws against “revenge porn”—the non-consensual sharing of intimate images—have been in place since 2015, they do not currently extend to the use of AI-generated fake images. With deepfake technology rapidly advancing, the need for new legal safeguards has never been more urgent.
Data from the UK’s Revenge Porn Helpline shows that the incidence of image-based abuse involving deepfakes has surged by over 400% since 2017, signaling the growing threat of digital exploitation. Under the proposed law, anyone found guilty of creating or sharing sexually explicit deepfake content without consent could face serious legal consequences, including criminal charges and potential jail time.
“There is no excuse for creating sexually explicit deepfakes of anyone without their consent,” said the Ministry of Justice in a statement. The government emphasized that the new offence would be robust, with perpetrators facing prosecution for both the creation and distribution of harmful digital material.
In a similar vein, the government has promised to introduce new laws that criminalize the taking of intimate images without consent, as well as the installation of devices with the intent to commit such offences. Offenders could face sentences of up to two years in prison for these violations.
“This degrading and vile form of misogyny cannot be allowed to become normalized,” said Alex Davies-Jones, Minister for Victims. “We must take action to protect women and girls from the distress and harm caused by these vile digital attacks.”
Technology Minister Margaret Jones further underscored that online platforms hosting abusive content would face increased scrutiny and stringent penalties if found to be complicit in hosting harmful images.
Jess Davies, a prominent campaigner, added, “Intimate-image abuse is a national emergency that’s causing profound, long-lasting harm to women and girls, who lose all control over their digital lives at the hands of online misogyny.”
This new legal framework will be included in the upcoming Crime and Policing Bill, which is slated to be introduced to Parliament, although the exact date remains to be confirmed.
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