Senate Passes Defiance Act, Granting Deepfake Victims the Right to Sue

A federal bill known as the Disrupt Explicit Forged Images and Non-Consensual Edits (Defiance) Act of 2024 has passed the Senate unanimously and is now moving to the House for a vote. This bill, introduced by Senate Judiciary Chair Dick Durbin and Sen. Lindsay Graham, aims to create a federal civil remedy for victims of nonconsensual sexually explicit deepfakes. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is sponsoring the legislation in the House, calling it the first federal protection for survivors of nonconsensual deepfake pornography. The bill defines nonconsensual sexually explicit deepfakes as fake images created through technological means that depict victims in sexually explicit scenarios. The civil remedy would allow victims to sue those who create, possess, distribute, or receive deepfakes without consent, with a statute of limitations of 10 years. Deepfakes have become increasingly popular, particularly targeting women and girls, but also impacting men. Legislation was introduced following high-profile incidents like the viral spread of AI-generated images of Taylor Swift. Durbin has been an advocate for addressing deepfakes and ensuring that victims have legal recourse. The passing of the Defiance Act in the Senate is seen as a step towards providing victims with the tools they need to fight back against image-based sexual abuse.

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