Attorney General Derek Brown Leads Bipartisan Coalition Urging Tech Companies to Stop the Spread of Deepfake Nonconsensual Intimate Imagery  

Attorney General Derek Brown co-led a bipartisan coalition of 47 attorneys general in calling on major search engines and payment platforms to take stronger action against the growing spread of computer-generated deepfake nonconsensual intimate imagery (NCII), commonly known as “deepfakes.” In a letter to search engines, the coalition outlines the failures of these companies to limit the creation of deepfakes and calls for stronger safeguards – such as warnings and redirecting users away from harmful content – to better protect the public. In a separate letter to payment platforms, the coalition urges these companies to take bolder action to protect the public by identifying and removing payment authorization for deepfake NCII content.   

The spread of computer-generated NCII online poses significant harm to the public – particularly women and girls. It has increasingly been used to embarrass, intimidate, and exploit people around the world, including notable cases involving celebrities like Taylor Swift, as well as teenagers in New Jersey, Florida, Washington, Kentucky, South Korea, and Spain. Although deepfake NCII overwhelmingly targets women and girls, men and boys have been victimized as well. A recent report found that 98% of fake videos online are deepfake NCII. 

Utah law S.B. 66, enacted in 2024, specifically addresses the issue of NCII. This legislation reinforces that it is illegal to create, distribute, generate, or possess computer-generated deepfakes without the consent of the individuals depicted. The law aims to protect individuals from exploitation and abuse by imposing strict penalties on those who engage in such activities. This proactive measure underscores Utah’s commitment to protecting the privacy and dignity of its residents. 

In their letters, the coalition points to existing industry practices that can be deployed to address NCII. For example, search engines already limit access to harmful content such as searches for “how to build a bomb” and “how to kill yourself.” The attorneys general urged these companies to adopt similar measures for searches such as “how to make deepfake pornography,” “undress apps,” “nudify apps,” or “deepfake porn.” The coalition also urged payment platforms to deny sellers the ability to use their services when they learn of connections to deepfake NCII tools and content and remove those sellers from their network.   

Attorney General Derek Brown co-sponsored these bipartisan letters along with Kentucky Attorney General Coleman, Massachusetts Attorney General Campbell, New Jersey Attorney General Platkin, and Pennsylvania Attorney General Sunday. The letters were authored by Vermont Attorney General Charity Clark. Joining the sponsors are the Attorneys General of Alaska, American Samoa, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Georgia, Hawai’i, Idaho, Illinois, Iowa, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Puerto Rico, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, U.S. Virgin Islands, Virgina, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin, and Wyoming.