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12-05-2025 12:48am
Congressman Auchincloss Tackles Nonconsensual Deepfake Pornography by Introducing Bipartisan Deepfake Liability Act
Darlene Cancell
Editor
On December 2nd, U.S. Representatives Jake Auchincloss (D, MA-04) and Celeste Maloy (R, UT-02) introduced the Deepfake Liability Act, proposed legislation that is intended to address the steep rise of deepfake nonconsensual pornography where victims are often women and teenagers.
There are now "nudification apps" that, aided by artificial intelligence, allow users to create a fake pornographic image of a person, regardless of whether the subject has consented. Nonconsensual creation and sharing of these deepfake images can lead to victims feeling traumatized and experiencing serious and harmful effects.
“AI shouldn’t have special privileges & immunities that journalists don’t get,” said Congressman Jake Auchincloss. “Using bots or deepfakes to violate or stalk another person is reprehensible, and it needs to be a CEO-level problem for the trillion-dollar social media corporations that platform it. Congress needs to get ahead of this growing problem, instead of being left in the dust like we were with social media.”
In support of the bill, the legislators noted that the vast majority of online deepfake imagery is deepfake pornography. According to one widely cited industry report from 2019, almost all deepfake pornography websites target females.
A more recent 2025 study by University of Melbourne researchers, that surveyed 16,000 adults in 10 countries on nonconsensual photo and video pornography, found that both men and women were victimized at similar rates, although women experienced more severe harm. Victim rates were also found to be relatively higher among LGBTQ+ and younger survey respondents.
Currently, the Communications Decency Act's Section 230 provides a liability shield for online platforms. Its breadth of protection means that it removes the platforms' incentive to ensure users’ safety or address harmful content, say the representatives.
The proposed Deepfake Liability Act would help strengthen platforms' incentive to protect users. It would condition the ability of a platform to apply the Section 230 liability shield on whether the platform has implemented a duty of care to be responsive to complaints of cyberstalking and abusive deepfakes. The proposed legislation would require:
- A process to prevent, to the extent practicable, cyberstalking and abusive deepfakes.
- A clear and accessible process to report instances of these harms, as well as a process for investigating them.
- A process to remove information that the provider knows or has reason to know constitutes one of these harms.
- Data logging requirements to ensure victims’ access to data for legal proceedings.
- A process for the removal or blocking of content determined to be unlawful by a court.
"Abusive deepfakes and cyberstalking are harming people across the country, and victims deserve real help. Our bill creates a straightforward duty of care and a reliable process to remove harmful content when victims ask for help,” said Congresswoman Maloy. “Companies that take this seriously will keep their protections under the law. Those that do nothing will be held accountable.”
The Deepfake Liability Act would also amend the definition of “information content provider” in Section 230 to clarify that AI-generated content is not covered by Section 230 protections.
Additionally, the proposed legislation would implement the notice and removal provisions of the TAKE IT DOWN Act, which passed and became law this Congress.
“The time is now to reform Section 230. For too long, online platforms have been shielded from liability for online abuse that we know silences victims and ruins lives," said Danielle Keats Citron, Vice President of the Cyber Civil Rights Initiative. "Nearly every industry owes basic duties to prevent foreseeable harm; with this bill, so will the tech industry."
Thanks to the Office of Congressman Jake Auchincloss for sharing this news with Westwood Minute.
