Michigan lawmakers: Extortionists using AI to create deepfake pornography must be stopped
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A research company found that between 90% and 95% of deepfake videos online since 2018 are nonconsensual pornography and about 90% of those nonconsensual videos are of nonconsensual porn are of women.
This story was originally published by Michigan Advance.
Legislation to ban non-consensual hyper-realistic “deepfake” pornography stalled out in the Michigan Legislature last year, but that hasn’t slowed the production of those materials and lawmakers say that needs to change.
Bills to outlaw those materials were back again before the Senate Civil Rights, Judiciary and Public Safety Committee on Thursday.
Testifying before the committee was bill sponsor and state Rep. Penelope Tsernoglou (D-East Lansing). Tsernoglou said that each time she gets the opportunity to tell her fellow lawmakers there’s a need for more regulation in artificial intelligence, the issue becomes worse because In Michigan, and across other states, there are bad actors who use artificial intelligence to create non-consensual fake pornographic media.
“As the percentage of the population that uses artificial intelligence technology, either knowingly or unknowingly, continues to grow exponentially, we must stay hyper-vigilant in our efforts to regulate the technology and to ensure that our most vulnerable community members are not exploited or harmed,” Tsernoglou told the committee on Thursday.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation and U.S. Department of Homeland Security both are reaching out to the American public about the rising issue of sexual exploitation taking place online, cautioning that children particularly are often being targeted.
Both agencies cited a study from Sensity AI, a research company tracking deepfake media, which found that between 90% and 95% of deepfake videos online since 2018 are nonconsensual pornography and about 90% of those nonconsensual videos are of nonconsensual porn are of women.
As the Michigan Senate considers House Bills 4047 and 4048, introduced by Tsernoglou and Rep. Matt Bierlein (R-Vassar) to ban nonconsensual deepfake pornography and place criminal penalties on their production, lawmakers in the committee meeting Thursday shared how the issue has impacted people they know.
State Sen. Paul Wojno (D-Warren) said he appreciates that the bills address the nefarious nature of the materials, especially when it comes to extortion. He shared that a friend of his daughter had been extorted by someone using a fake image.
“[A] deep fake was created and they sent it to her and threatened that if she didn’t pay a certain amount of money, it would be posted on social media,” Wojno said.
These extortionists don’t even necessarily know their victims, said Zoey Brewer, policy and grassroots coordinator with the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network. But by using technology that is becoming more realistic and more accessible to the public, Brewer said criminals are extorting money from victims or creating such intense anxiety in their victims that they can’t attend school or work and, in some cases, they resort to suicide.
The bills have bipartisan support, and cleared the state House with a nearly unanimous vote in April, just as they did last session. But the bills failed to clear the state Senate last year during a turbulent lame duck session.
State Sen. Stephanie Chang (D-Detroit), the committee’s chair, said the Senate had “every intention” of taking up the bills, but she’s glad lawmakers are pressing the issue again this session.
Deepfakes don’t just impact celebrities and they aren’t harmless jokes, Bierlein said. Michigan’s laws have left families and law enforcement without proper recourse to go after extortionists making fake sexual materials, he added.
Among the groups who submitted support for the bills was the Michigan Sheriff’s Association.
The legislation being considered by the committee would send a strong message that Michigan will not tolerate digital abuse and would not only criminalize nonconsensual deepfake pornography, but also allow victims to sue the individuals who create it, Bierlein said.
“They’re deeply invasive, traumatic violations that can ruin lives,” Bierlein said of deepfake pornographic media. “Reputations, careers and mental health have all been damaged or destroyed by the weaponization of someone’s likeness, often targeting women, minors and vulnerable individuals. This is not a hypothetical issue, in my own district I have heard from families and young people who have been directly affected by these people.”
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