Pa. legislators approve bill outlawing sharing of deepfake porn

HARRISBURG — Legislation making it illegal to share deepfake pornography generated with artificial intelligence and without the subject’s consent cleared both chambers of the Pennsylvania General Assembly on Wednesday.

Senate Bill 1213, which also outlaws AI-generated child pornography, moves to the desk of Gov. Josh Shapiro to be signed into law.

The Senate first passed the bill in June. It was since amended in the House, changes to which the Senate concurred. Should it be moved into law as expected, the bill would take effect in 60 days.

Sharing pornographic images without consent was already illegal, as is child porn, of course. There was a loophole, however, that didn’t cover the rising technology of images created with AI.

“This technology is being used to make fake images look very, very real,” state Sen. Lisa Boscola, D-Lehigh/Northampton, said during floor remarks. “As we all know, once these images are created and shared, they’re around forever.”

The bill adds three specific offenses to Pennsylvania’s Crimes Code related to pornography created using artificial intelligence or photo editing software: unlawful dissemination of intimate image, sexual abuse of children, transmission of sexually explicit images by minor.

The charges related to unlawful dissemination and transmission by minors are each misdemeanors — the former carrying a maximum penalty of up to 5 years in prison, the latter up to 2 years.

The charge of sexual abuse of children is a felony with maximum sentences ranging from 7 years up to 20 years.

Sen. Tracy Pennycuick, R-Berks/Montgomery, Sen. Jimmy Dillon, D-Philadelphia, and Boscola were primary sponsors of the bill.

In a joint press release after Wednesday’s vote, they cited a case this year under investigation in Lancaster in which artificially generated nude photos used the faces of more than 20 female teenage students.

“The district attorney said that in some cases charges can’t be filed because the images don’t involve actual children,” the release stated.

The bill can’t be applied retroactively, however, it would give law enforcement and prosecutors authority to pursue charges and a conviction moving forward.

During floor remarks, Dillon referred to a case in New Jersey that included fake images of high school students, some as young as 14 years old.

“This newly developing criminal activity requires guardrails set in place so our law enforcement and prosecutors can tackle these crimes head on,” he said.