![](\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2024\/01\/nude-images-circulating-social-media-72683566_0d6588.jpg?resize=1536,1024&quality=75&strip=all\")
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By: Brenna Harman<\/p>\n
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What is a Deepfake and what is Deepfake Porn?<\/strong><\/p>\n A deepfake is a fake or doctored image generated by a kind of machine learning known as “deep” learning.[1]<\/a> The machine is fed algorithms and then learns how to produce an output that resembles the images or examples it learned from.[2]<\/a> Sometimes harmless, this AI can be used to “age yourself,” face swap with your friend, and more.[3]<\/a> Despite the fun, deep learning can be used to create images that humans are unable to identify as being fake at all.[4]<\/a>\u00a0With the majority of people getting information and formulating their opinions from content on the internet, deepfakes can release misinformation and influence the masses.[5]<\/a> On the micro-scale, deepfakers can target specific individuals with personalized pictures and videos.[6]<\/a><\/p>\n Deepfake has now been used to create AI-generated pornographic photos and videos.[7]<\/a> The technology can use algorithms that are trained to remove clothing from images and replace it with naked body parts.[8]<\/a> While these algorithms could “strip” men, they are typically focused on images of women.[9]<\/a> Sometimes deepfake porn is purely for lewd purposes, but other times it is intended to harass, extort, and embarrass victims.[10]<\/a><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Who Does It Impact?<\/strong><\/p>\n Just last week, sexually explicit, deepfake images of Taylor Swift went viral on X.[11]<\/a> Although the social media platform quickly worked to block searches of the nonconsensual deepfake photos, her fanbase immediately reacted.[12]<\/a> The attention Taylor Swift received cast light on the broader issue of deepfake porn and the impact it has on women and girls.[13]<\/a> While high-profile celebrities make up the bulk of deepfake porn images, regular women and children are now just as likely to be targeted.[14]<\/a><\/p>\n “Since this technology has become more widely available, 90-95% of deepfake videos are now nonconsensual pornographic videos and, of those videos, 90% target women \u2014 mostly underage.”[15]<\/a> \u00a0All a perpetrator needs is an innocent photo from social media and they can turn it into an explicit image that looks just like the victim.[16]<\/a> The problem is believed to be regularly affecting millions of teenage girls.[17]<\/a><\/p>\n <\/p>\n What Can the Law Do About It?<\/strong><\/p>\n A large issue is the lack of federal laws to prevent the images from being spread, as there are no prohibitions on either the creation or dissemination of nonconsensual deepfake porn.[18]<\/a> After the wake of images targeting Taylor Swift, bipartisan lawmakers introduced The Disrupt Explicit Forged Images and Non-Consensual Edits, or DEFIANCE, Act.[19]<\/a> This Act would allow victims to sue “if those who created the deepfakes knew, or ‘recklessly disregarded’ that the victim did not consent to its making.”[20]<\/a> The DEFIANCE Act would be the first federal law to protect deepfake victims.[21]<\/a><\/p>\n A bill was previously introduced that would criminalize “the spread of nonconsensual, sexualized images generated by artificial intelligence.”[22]<\/a> If passed, the law would allow victims to seek a civil penalty against whoever produced the “digital forgeries” or anyone who received the forgeries knowing they were made without consent.[23]<\/a> There has been no action taken on the bill since its introduction, but recent polling showed that 84% of Americans are in support of federal action.[24]<\/a><\/p>\n Several states have passed legislation, but the strength and application vary, with some state laws requiring an “illicit motive”.[25]<\/a> The requirement of this motive puts a higher burden on victims to prove their case.[26]<\/a> Even laws against revenge pornography do not cover porn created by deepfake technology.[27]<\/a><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Conclusion<\/strong><\/p>\n The accessibility of AI enables perpetrators to sexually exploit with the click of a button.[28]<\/a> Deepfake porn is putting millions of young girls at risk and there are few protections currently in place.[29]<\/a> Federal legislation needs to be enacted in order to protect one of the most vulnerable classes of citizens.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n Image Source: https:\/\/nypost.com\/2024\/02\/02\/news\/teen-girls-turned-into-deepfake-porn-like-taylor-swift\/<\/p>\n [1]<\/a> What the heck is a deepfake?<\/em>, Univ. of Va., https:\/\/security.virginia.edu\/deepfakes (last visited Feb. 3, 2024).<\/p>\n [2]<\/a> Id.<\/em><\/p>\n [3]<\/a> Id.<\/em><\/p>\n [4]<\/a> Id.<\/em><\/p>\n [5]<\/a> Id.<\/em><\/p>\n [6]<\/a> supra<\/em> note 1.<\/p>\n [7]<\/a> Bill Chappell, Deepfakes exploiting Taylor Swift Images exemplify a scourge with little oversight<\/em>, NPR (Jan. 26, 2024, 6:01 PM), https:\/\/www.npr.org\/2024\/01\/26\/1227091070\/deepfakes-taylor-swift-images-regulation.<\/p>\n [8]<\/a> Sophie Maddocks, What is deepfake porn and why is it thriving in the age of AI?<\/em> PennToday (July 25, 2023), https:\/\/penntoday.upenn.edu\/news\/what-deepfake-porn-and-why-it-thriving-age-ai.<\/p>\n [9]<\/a> Id.<\/em><\/p>\n [10]<\/a> Sion Geschwindt, Taylor Swift deepfake porn deluge a ‘wake-up call’ for lawmakers<\/em>, TNW (Feb. 1, 2024, 3:39 PM), https:\/\/thenextweb.com\/news\/taylor-swift-deepfake-porn.<\/p>\n [11]<\/a> Melissa Heikkila, Three ways we can fight deepfake porn<\/em>, MIT Tech. Rev. (Jan. 29, 2024), https:\/\/www.technologyreview.com\/2024\/01\/29\/1087325\/three-ways-we-can-fight-deepfake-porn-taylors-version\/\/.<\/p>\n [12]<\/a> Id.<\/em>; Ian Krietzberg, Deepfake porn: It’s not just about Taylor Swift<\/em>, Jackson Progress-Argus (Feb. 3, 2024), https:\/\/www.jacksonprogress-argus.com\/arena\/thestreet\/deepfake-porn-its-not-just-about-taylor-swift\/article_71576e96-f9cb-53dd-a4b9-f467afb7e577.html.<\/p>\n [13]<\/a> Krietzberg, supra<\/em> note 12; Heikkila, supra<\/em> note 11.<\/p>\n [14]<\/a> Geschwindt, supra <\/em>note 10.<\/p>\n [15]<\/a> Caroline Quirk, The High Stakes of Deepfakes: The Growing Necessity of Federal Legislation to Regulate This Rapidly Evolving Technology, Princeton Legal J. (June 19, 2023), https:\/\/legaljournal.princeton.edu\/the-high-stakes-of-deepfakes-the-growing-necessity-of-federal-legislation-to-regulate-this-rapidly-evolving-technology\/.<\/p>\n [16]<\/a> Rikki Schlott, It’s not just Taylor Swift ‘nudes’: Millions of teen girls victimized as classmates turn them into deepfake porn, N.Y. Post (Feb. 2, 2024, 5:00 AM), https:\/\/nypost.com\/2024\/02\/02\/news\/teen-girls-turned-into-deepfake-porn-like-taylor-swift\/.<\/p>\n [17]<\/a> Id.<\/em><\/p>\n [18]<\/a> Krietzberg, supra<\/em> note 12.<\/p>\n [19]<\/a> Solcyre Burga, How a New Bill Could Protect Against Deepfakes<\/em>, TIME (Jan. 31, 2024, 4:34 PM), https:\/\/time.com\/6590711\/deepfake-protection-federal-bill\/.<\/p>\n [20]<\/a> Id.<\/em><\/p>\n [21]<\/a> Id.<\/em><\/p>\n [22]<\/a> Blake Montgomery, Taylor Swift AI images prompt US bill to tackle nonconsensual, sexual deepfakes, The Guardian (Jan. 30, 2024, 8:58 PM), https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/technology\/2024\/jan\/30\/taylor-swift-ai-deepfake-nonconsensual-sexual-images-bill; Burga, supra<\/em> note 19.<\/p>\n [23]<\/a> Montgomery, supra<\/em> note 22.<\/p>\n [24]<\/a> Burga, supra<\/em> note 19.<\/p>\n [25]<\/a> Krietzberg, supra<\/em> note 12; Elliot Davis Jr., These States Have Banned the Type of Deepfakes That Targeted Taylor Swift<\/em>, U.S. News (Jan. 30, 2024), https:\/\/www.usnews.com\/news\/best-states\/articles\/2024-01-30\/these-states-have-banned-the-type-of-deepfake-porn-that-targeted-taylor-swift.<\/p>\n [26]<\/a> Davis, supra<\/em> note 25.<\/p>\n [27]<\/a> Krietzberg, supra<\/em> note 12.<\/p>\n