UK Moves to Criminalize Sexually Explicit Deepfakes Amid Rising Concerns

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The United Kingdom is set to take strong legislative action against the creation and distribution of sexually explicit deepfakes, a growing concern in the digital age. The UK justice ministry announced on Tuesday that new laws will make it a criminal offense to create or share such altered images, particularly those that target women and girls without their consent.

Deepfakes, which utilize artificial intelligence to forge realistic media, have surged in prevalence, with reports indicating a more than 400% increase in image-based abuse since 2017. Under the proposed new laws, offenders could face prosecution, fines, and potentially jail time for both creating and disseminating these explicit materials.

The justice ministry emphasized that there is "no excuse" for such actions, and the legislation will also address related offenses, such as taking intimate images without consent. Victims Minister Alex Davies-Jones expressed the need to combat this issue, labeling it as a form of "demeaning and disgusting chauvinism."

These new measures will be outlined in an upcoming Crime and Policing Bill, which will soon be introduced to Parliament. Additional scrutiny will be applied to technology platforms hosting abusive content, which may face significant penalties for failing to address these issues.

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