A.G. Gancarski
Legislation allowing people who have been the victim of pornographic deepfakes to get offensive material pulled from online platforms is heading to Gov. Ron DeSantis’ desk.
The Senate unanimously approved the House version of “Brooke’s Law” (SB 700), which would require internet platforms to develop and prominently promote a policy by the end of 2025 for removing deepfake images and videos of this type after the victim is identified.
Republican Sen. Alexis Calatayud, who sponsored the legislation, said it “addresses the reality that there is no current avenue by which an altered sexual depiction posted on an internet platform can be removed by the individual whose image was used.”
“This is specifically referring to deepfake images, of which 99% are targeted towards women and 98% are pornographic in nature. This experience unfortunately occurs to Floridians of all ages and is a traumatic experience,” she added.
The bill, which envisions the Florida Unfair Trade and Deceptive Practices Act as its enforcement mechanism, would expand on legislation championed by former Senate Democratic Leader Lauren Book that imposed criminal and civil penalties by creating a law to require sites to remove objectionable images.
The legislation was inspired by what Jacksonville’s Brooke Curry went through in 2023, when a deepfake nude of her was posted to social media. The measure would conceivably create a mechanism to stop the victimization she suffered from happening to others.
“Her phone flooded with messages from her friends of an altered depiction and a damaging photo circulated on Snapchat, and a stranger with whom she had mutual friends had manipulated one of her own Instagram photos to create this,” Calatayud said, describing an incident that happened in the Summer of 2023.
Curry, the daughter of former Jacksonville Mayor Lenny Curry, lacked immediate recourse despite her family’s proximity to power. If this bill becomes law, others may ultimately benefit from her struggle.
