Peers were told about horrifying cases where deepfake explicit images were created and shared online as Baroness Charlotte Owen demanded the law is changed to stop it happening
Horrifying cases of deepfake explicit images are the “new frontier of violence against women”, Parliament has heard.
Shocked peers were told that in one instance a victim discovered one of her best friends had sent pictures of her to a forum where sick users created fake sexual images and videos. Ministers face calls to urgently change the law to stop this happening.
Baroness Charlotte Owen, presenting a Bill aimed at tackling the crisis, told peers: “Make no mistake, deepfake abuse is the new frontier of violence against women, and the non-consensual creation of a woman’s naked image is an act of abuse.”
She said one website dedicated to sharing such images gets over 13million hits a month, while one processed over 600,000 fake pictures in three weeks. 99% of these are of women, the Lords heard.
Tory peer Baroness Owen said: “This abuse causes untold trauma, anxiety, and distress. All women are now forced to live under the ever present threat that anyone can own sexually explicit content of them.” She said existing laws are a “patchwork of legislation” that cannot keep pace with new technology.
Baroness Owen told the House of Lords of harrowing cases she had been made aware of. She said: “Over the course of five years, Jodi found that her images were being stolen from her private Instagram page and posted onto forums with requests to use her image to create sexually explicit content.
“The images, which were fully clothed and uploaded by someone she counted as her best friend, were accompanied by degrading captions and invitations, asking others on the forum what they would like to do to little Jodi and to deepfake her into pornographic situations on his behalf.”
These included deepfaked depictions of Jodi being raped, Baroness Owen said. Her Bill would make it illegal to create sexually explicit images of a person without their consent, including screenshotting.
The Bill would also force offenders to delete images. Baroness Owen said in one case a woman who successfully brought charges against her ex-boyfriend was forced to hand the material back to him.
Calling for swift action she said: “Given the rapid proliferation of this abuse every day that we delay is another day when women have to live under this ever present threat.”
Labour peer Lord Jim Knight said Baroness Owen’s call had support from across the political spectrum and said the Government must “find a way forward” to bring laws forward “as a matter of urgency”.
The Government has committed to banning the creation of sexually explicit deepfake images. Supporting the legislation, Baroness Carmen Smith – at 28 the youngest member of the House of Lords – said: “Imagine a world where any woman can end up in a porn film without their consent.
“In a world where only one image is needed for a life to be turned upside down. We are in that world and we have a duty to act.” She added: “Doing nothing is a stark message sent to women.”