The Deputy Prime Minister has commented about legislation on
deepfakes being signed today, which will bring it into force in
the coming weeks
Deputy Prime Minister said:
“I am repulsed by the disgusting, abusive behaviour we've seen
online. X's announcement is welcome, but it is imperative this
government continues to take urgent action to stop vile criminals
using these tools to exploit innocent women and children online.
“On Monday, we said we would fast track work to bring this
legislation into force, meaning it will soon be illegal for
anyone to create or request deepfake intimate images of
adults without consent. And today we have, meaning it will now
become law within weeks.
“Let this be a clear message to every cowardly perpetrator hiding
behind a screen: you will be stopped and when you are, make no
mistake that you will face the full force of the law.”
Guidance:
- Today, Minister Alex-Davies Jones signed a statutory
instrument in Parliament to bring the deepfakes legislation into
force in the coming weeks.
- The offences will come into force in early February, 21
days after being signed – as is standard practice for new
criminal offences.
- This will make it illegal to create or request a
nonconsensual deepfake image of an adult.
- But platforms already have a legal duty to stop the
proliferation of these images under the Online Safety Act 2023. X
doesn't need to wait for the Ofcom investigation to conclude.
- Ofcom has the government's full backing to use all the levers
at its disposal to enforce the Online Safety Act 2023.
