Last month, we covered the legality of A.I. generated porn and the instances in which one might find themselves in legal trouble should they engage with said materials. This week, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York unsealed two criminal complaints charging Cornelius Shannon, of New Jersey, and Arturo Hernandez, of Bedias, Texas, with violations of the TAKE IT DOWN Act, in what appears to be a signal for future increases in federal prosecutions under the law. The TAKE IT DOWN Act, which stands for “Tools to Address Known Exploitation by Immobilizing Technological Deepfakes on Websites and Networks Act” criminalizes the nonconsensual publication of intimate images, including A.I.-generated deepfakes.
According to the complaint and affidavit in support of the application for an arrest warrant for Shannon, as of the month prior to the complaint, he had uploaded “approximately 360 albums” on an account associated with him containing “A.I. pornography material of approximately 90 different female victims” which had been viewed approximately 2.4 million times. Though the names of 9 individuals in the complaint were redacted in the complaint, the images are alleged to depict “deepfakes” of known political figures and entertainers in various states of undress and/or performing sex acts. Likewise, according to a similar charging instrument for Hernandez, he allegedly published approximately 113 albums depicting “at least 50 identifiable female victims,” including non-public figures, with images and videos from one of his alleged accounts that was viewed approximately 962,400 times. Victims similarly included actresses, singers, political figures, but also included private individuals such as, “his friend with her relative and other friends; a religious mother and daughter; his classmates; and graduating girls” with images morphed from images previously uploaded on the victim’s Instagram account, according to the complaint. This is a notable expansion beyond the celebrity targets often associated with deepfake abuse. If convicted, each defendant faces up to two years’ imprisonment.
In our previous post, we discussed the first instance of a conviction under this relatively new law and explored the legal landscape around A.I.-generated pornographic images. At the time, it was not clear how aggressively the federal government would enforce the new rules, but this case out of New York makes clear that an increase in arrests is likely on the horizon. Joseph Nocella, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, announced arrests and stated “the defendants used cutting-edge digital technology to create images that degraded and violated victims across the United States” and these arrests, “[make] clear that posting deepfake pornography is not a victimless crime.” Nocella went on to say that his office will “pursue the criminals who engage in this reprehensible conduct with all the legal resources that the federal government can bring to bear, including new authorities granted by Congress.” Further, his comments thanking multiple F.B.I offices in Texas and New Jersey for their involvement in the investigation signals that the FBI is actively involved in these investigations and coordinating between offices to bring these charges together. F.B.I. Assistant Director James Barnacle characterized use of A.I. technology in the alleged conduct as “predatory” and said that, “the use of this emerging technology to victimize individuals is not innovative – it is criminal and will be pursued with the full force of the law.” While the use of celebrities and politicians was undoubtedly a factor in both cases, Hernandez’s charges makes it clear that the law does not only apply to public figures, since his complaint includes allegations involving depictions of alleged victims from his personal life, demonstrating that federal prosecutors intend to protect ordinary people, not just high-profile victims under the new law. Although the defendants and similar situated individuals may claim ignorance of the law or believe that because the images were generated using artificial intelligence tools that they would somehow be immune from prosecutions, the charges in this and likely future cases makes it clear that this is not the case.
If you or someone you know has been accused of conduct related to AI-generated intimate images, it is critical to seek an experienced criminal defense attorney immediately. The federal government has made clear that this is an emerging priority enforcement area, and the consequences of a conviction, including federal imprisonment, are severe.The post More TAKE IT DOWN Act Arrests Signal Escalating Crackdown on A.I. Deepfake Pornography first appeared on Darryl A. Goldberg.
