HELENA — Sharing sexually explicit deepfakes created by artificial intelligence could become a crime if a bill in the Montana Senate passes, an effort the bill’s sponsor says was spurred by an increasing trend of these images across the country.
Senate Bill 413, carried by Sen. Laura Smith, D-Helena, had its first hearing in the Senate Judiciary Committee Thursday. Smith’s bill would give law enforcement more tools in cases of extortion and intimidation.
“The way that deepfakes are being used right now to, from my understanding, to intimidate or influence people, I narrowed it to the sexually explicit,” Smith said. “It doesn't mean that someone else couldn't run a bill that applies to all … non-consensual deepfakes.”
The hearing had one proponent and one opponent. Nanette Gilbertson with the Montana County Attorneys’ Association supported SB 413.
”We're very grateful for Senator Smith bringing this bill and thinking forward about this emerging problem,” Gilbertson said. “AI has arrived and we are dealing with it and we're going to be dealing with it."
Smith added that a criminal enhancement applies when these deepfakes are made using minors.
The bill is similar to Senate Bill 82, which adds the use of AI to criminal offenses in sextortion cases involving minors. SB 82 flew through the House on near-unanimous votes and is now in Senate committees.
Clayton Murphy is a reporter with the UM Legislative News Service, a partnership of the University of Montana School of Journalism, the Montana Broadcasters Association, the Montana Newspaper Association and the Greater Montana Foundation. Murphy can be reached at clayton.murphy@umconnect.umt.edu.
