Private Member’s Bill Seeks Regulation Of Deepfakes, Criminalises Non-Consensual Synthetic Content

The Regulation of Deepfake Bill, 2024, introduced as a private member’s Bill in Parliament, seeks to criminalise the creation and circulation of malicious deepfake content made without consent.

The Bill mandates prior consent of individuals depicted in AI-generated audio or video content and requires digital watermarking to ensure traceability of synthetic media.

While it declares certain forms of deepfake creation and dissemination as criminal offences, the Bill does not prescribe fixed jail terms or fines. Instead, penalties are to be determined on a case-by-case basis through rules framed on the recommendations of a proposed Deepfake Task Force.

The Task Force is tasked with assessing misuse, prevalence, and national security risks posed by deepfake technology.