The president of the United States, Donald Trump has signed the bipartisan Take it Down Act into law. He did this in an effort to take action against deep fakes and revenge porn. The First Lady Lady Melania Trump further advocated the bill as part of her renewed “Be Best” initiative. The law passed both the House and Senate and was signed into law by her husband during a signing ceremony in the White House Rose Garden on May 19. In this article, you’ll learn more about this act and why it was introduced.
What is Meant by the Take it Down Act?
The Take it Down Act is a law that criminalizes the publication of non-consensual intimate imagery (NCII). It includes AI-generated images, which is also known as deepfake revenge pornography. As per the law, social media platforms and relevant websites must remove revenge pornography within two days of notice from victims.
What are the Key Provisions in the Take it Down Act?
The key provisions in the Take it Down Act include the following:
- Criminalizing unwanted intimate imagery by making it a federal crime to knowingly publish or share it on social media and other platforms and clarifies that consent to create an image does not mean consent to share it. Non-consensual intimate imagery includes realistic, online-generated porn images and videos that depict identifiable and real people.
- It requires websites and other online platforms to take down unwanted or illegal intimate imagery upon notice from the victim within 2 days of the request. This law also requires that the platform makes reasonable efforts to remove copies and reposts of the relevant images.
- It also protects free speech by targeting the “knowing publication” of non-consensual intimate imagery that requires that the computer-generated content meet a “reasonable person” test for appearing indistinguishable from an authentic image.
- It allows medical experts or law enforcement to participate in the digital forgery of an identifiable person when acting reasonably and in good faith.
What are Known as Deepfakes?
Deep Fakes are photos, videos, or audio that are created or altered by ai tools to appear real, often without the subject of the media’s consent. Many creators of deepfake images trouble people by placing them into compromising positions that may make them appear inappropriate, embarrass them or cause a controversy. With the recent emergence of the use of AI technology, this has become a matter for concern.
What is the Involvement of Melania Trump?
Melania Trump heavily advocated for the Take it Down Act and argued that it protects people’s privacy via strong security measures and strict ethical standards. On the 3rd of March, she called the consequences of unwanted sexually explicit images as “toxic” in her first public comments since her husband returned to the White House.
“It is heartbreaking to see young teens, especially girls, deal with the overwhelming challenges posed by malicious online content, like deepakes”. She said this while making a rare public appearance on capitol hill.
During the first Trump administration, Melania Trump advocated against cyberbullying via her “Be Best” campaign that gave importance to the emotional, social, and physical health of children due to factors like social media and opioid abuse.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt Talks with Reporters
The White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters “The Take it Down Act” will protect victims of digital exploitation, hold internet platforms accountable by having them remove such images from their platform and provide justice to victims by allowing lawyers to go after those who publish unwanted explicit images online.”
Final Note
“The Take it Down” Act is a big legislative step taken by the Trump administration to combat the growing threats of deepakes and non sensual online intimate imagery. This law will protect victims from digital exploitation by computer-generated images by criminalizing the sharing of such content and removing them from online platforms. Though this is undoubtedly a right step taken by Trump, only time will tell how effective it can be to tackle such problems.
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