NH bill would ban ‘deep fake’ revenge porn

Senate Bill 464 would make it a crime in some cases to release without consent digitally altered images portraying people in sexual conduct

It would be illegal to share some “synthetic sexual images,” under a bill introduced in the N.H. Senate.
State Sen. Sharon Carson, R-Londonderry, told the Senate Judiciary Committee on Tuesday her Senate Bill 464 would make it a crime in some cases to release without consent digitally altered images portraying people in sexual conduct.
She provided an example of the behavior she is trying to prohibit.
“I read an article last year about a woman who experienced something like that,” Carson said. “Through the use of artificial intelligence, her face was morphed on to the body of a woman who was a pornography actor. It was disseminated, and she was devastated.”
She said advances in technology have made it easier to alter video, and added this is sometimes done by people who want to hurt a former partner after a breakup, something known as “revenge porn.”
“It is alarming to know that everyday people are having their images used to create false representations—which are often called ‘deep fakes’— of themselves conducting demeaning sexual acts,” Carson said.
People victimized in this way can suffer emotional and professional damage, she said.
A 2022 report by Pew Research found 8 percent of people aged 15 to 17 in the United States had fallen victim to revenge porn. The report did not have specific data on digitally altered images.
Lt. Eric Kinsman of the Portsmouth Police Department, commander of the New Hampshire Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force, testified in favor of the bill, saying current law needs to be changed to make such altered images illegal.
“While these digital photos may not be an actual person, they may be pictures that are indistinguishable from an actual person, and, therefore, there may be an actual victim,” he said.
A Bedford woman also testified in favor of the bill, saying an attempt was made to blackmail a family member over such a fake image.
Steven Endres, an assistant Merrimack County attorney, also said the measure is needed.
“Unfortunately, as technology advances, we find that people utilize that technology to exploit others until the law eventually catches up,” he said. “This is a proactive step to get ahead of that.”
Nobody testified against the bill, which would amend a section of state privacy law that already makes it a misdemeanor to disseminate without consent photos of a person engaging in sexual activity.
The committee will eventually make a recommendation on the bill and forward it to the full Senate.

Rick Green can be reached at RGreen@KeeneSentinel.com or 603-355-8567.

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