The Danish government plans to give citizens the right to their body, voice, and facial features to protect against deepfakes

The Danish government plans to tackle deepfakes created with the help of artificial intelligence by giving citizens the legal right to protect their bodies, voices and faces. The Ministry of Culture is preparing amendments to the legislation, which should be presented by the end of the summer, and the necessary amendments should be adopted in the fall. About this informs The Guardian.

According to the new rules, a digital imitation of a person, including their appearance and voice, will be considered a deepfake. It would also apply to “realistic, digitally generated simulations” of artists’ performances without their consent. Compensation for the victim is provided for the violation. At the same time, parodies and satire are not subject to the new law.

“With this bill, we reach agreement and send a clear message that every person has the right to their own body, voice and facial features — unfortunately, current law does not appear to provide such protections against generative AI.” – said the Minister of Culture of Denmark, Jakob Engel-Schmidt.

If the changes, which already have broad support in parliament, are passed, Danes will be able to demand that major platforms and social networks remove deepfakes featuring their image. If the companies refuse, they face fines and the case may be referred to the European Commission.

“People can be put through a digital copier and used for all kinds of purposes, and I’m not prepared to put up with that.”, – added Schmidt.