Findings

Congress finds the following: (1) Digital forgeries, often called deepfakes, are synthetic images and videos that look realistic. The technology to create digital forgeries is now ubiquitous and easy to use. Hundreds of apps are available that can quickly generate digital forgeries without the need for any technical expertise. (2) Digital forgeries can be wholly fictitious but can also manipulate images of real people to depict sexually intimate conduct that did not occur. For example, some digital forgeries will paste the face of an individual onto the body of a real or fictitious individual who is nude or who is engaging in sexual activity. Another example is a photograph of an individual that is manipulated to digitally remove the clothing of the individual so that the person appears to be nude. (3) The individuals depicted in such digital forgeries are profoundly harmed when the content is produced with intent to disclose, disclosed, or obtained without the consent of those individuals. These harms are not mitigated through labels or other information that indicates that the depiction is fake. (4) It can be destabilizing to victims whenever those victims are depicted in intimate digital forgeries against their will, as the privacy of those victims is violated and the victims lose control over their likeness and identity. (5) Victims can feel helpless because the victims— (A) may not be able to determine who has created the content; and (B) do not know how to prevent further disclosure of the intimate digital forgery or how to prevent more forgeries from being made. (6) Victims may be fearful of being in public out of concern that individuals the victims encounter have seen the digital forgeries. This leads to social rupture through the loss of the ability to trust, stigmatization, and isolation. (7) Victims of non-consensual, sexually intimate digital forgeries may experience depression, anxiety, and suicidal ideation. These victims may also experience the silencing effect in which the victims withdraw from online spaces and public discourse to avoid further abuse. (8) Digital forgeries are often used to— (A) harass victims, interfering with their employment, education, reputation, or sense of safety; or (B) commit extortion, sexual assault, domestic violence, and other crimes. (9) Because of the harms caused by non-consensual, sexually intimate digital forgeries, such digital forgeries are considered to be a form of image-based sexual abuse.