Latest news with #Brooke'sLaw
Yahoo
26-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
University of Florida researchers find uptick in AI-generated pornography
Researchers at the University of Florida say more people are becoming victims of pornography generated by artificial intelligence. A team from the university looked into a growing number of platforms that allow users to upload an image, then manipulate things like clothing, body shape and pose to transform it into a sexually explicit photo without the subject's consent. The study found that less than half of the websites they looked at required or enforced any kind of age verification in the photos. One week ago, President Donald Trump signed a federal law making it illegal to share such nonconsensual images. Florida lawmakers also recently passed a bill called 'Brooke's Law' to try to get such deepfake imagery removed within 48 hours. It was named for a Jacksonville teenager who was victimized by AI-generated nude photos shared online. The bill is now waiting for Gov. Ron DeSantis' signature. Click here to download our free news, weather and smart TV apps. And click here to stream Channel 9 Eyewitness News live.
Miami Herald
22-04-2025
- Politics
- Miami Herald
Florida revenge porn victims are about to get more recourse, even if not enough
Social media is a powerful tool, but, in the wrong hands, platforms can be weaponized. For victims of deepfakes and AI-generated revenge porn, the damage is deeply personal and immediate. To have those images removed, victims are left with zero guidance and forced to navigate an evolving landscape with limited recourse against the person posting the fake images. Recognizing the increased concerns over deepfakes — images or audio altered by artificial intelligence — the Florida Legislature is taking action toward cracking down on fake, pornographic depictions of people. Known as Brooke's Law, House Bill 1161 and companion Senate Bill 1400, introduced by Miami Sen. Alexis Calatayud, would require internet platforms to create a way for people to have altered sexual depictions and copies of such depictions removed from their platform upon request of the victim. The bill gets its name from former Jacksonville Mayor Lenny Curry's daughter, Brooke Curry, who was a victim of a deep fake pornographic image circulated on the social media platform Snapchat. Sadly, Brooke's story isn't unique. Sponsor state Rep. Wyman Duggan, R-Jacksonville, told lawmakers in a committee hearing last week, 'The Department of Homeland Security has declared that deep fakes and the misuse of synthetic content pose a clear, present and evolving threat to the public — 98% of the deep fake videos found online are explicitly pornographic, and 99% of those feature women.' Lawmakers on both sides of the aisle recognize the problem, and the bipartisan consensus is encouraging for victims who have found themselves with little protection. Last week, Brooke's Law unanimously cleared the House and is poised for Senate passage on Wednesday. The legislation avoids sweeping mandates and focuses on civil enforcement, and treats failure by social media platforms to comply as a deceptive business practice under Florida's consumer protection laws. Michael Flynn, a professor at Nova Southeastern University Shepard Broad College of Law, said that while the legislation offers a form of recourse, it's only part of the solution. 'Once the content is posted, the damage is done and any remedy for the victim cannot take back what is already out for others to view,' he told the Miami Herald Editorial Board. Flynn argues that, 'criminal penalties in addition to a civil remedy might be more effective.' Florida lawmakers aren't the only ones tackling the issue of deepfakes and revenge porn. The U.S. Senate has taken up the TAKE IT DOWN Act, bipartisan online safety legislation aimed to increase protections against the non-consensual dissemination of sexual images, including artificial intelligence generated images as well as deepfake and revenge porn. The difference between Brooke's Law and the TAKE IT DOWN Act is that Brooke's Law is civil and applies within Florida. The TAKE IT DOWN Act establishes federal criminal penalties against people who post non-consensual intimate images. Both bills would require a platform to remove the content within 48 hours of a request Brooke's Law is a significant step forward. By requiring platforms to create a take-down process, it ensures victims can take immediate action to protect themselves. However, as Flynn noted, 'the law may act as a deterrent but does not protect the victim once the posting of the images is complete.' There should be broader protections, such as creating victim support services and the consideration of criminal implications at the state level. Miami-based First Amendment attorney Tom Julin said Brooke's Law may prompt social media platforms to 'become much more aggressive in terms of limiting the content that they allow to be posted on their sites.' That may not be a bad thing, especially if it means fewer victims of deepfakes and revenge porn. Brooke's Law could have more teeth, but it still progress toward regulation on the destructive ways artificial intelligence can be used. Click here to send the letter.
Yahoo
07-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
‘Take back control': Bill named after former Jacksonville mayor aims to help victims of deepfake crimes
Imagine being sent a pornographic photo of yourself, only it isn't actually you in the photo, that is exactly what happened to former Jacksonville Mayor Lenny Curry's 16-year-old daughter. >>> STREAM ACTION NEWS JAX LIVE <<< [DOWNLOAD: Free Action News Jax app for alerts as news breaks] Brooke spoke out publicly for the first time since she fell victim to a new AI crime two years ago in an exclusive on-camera interview with Action News Jax. She was just 16 at the time, playing pickleball with friends. 'I just finished the game and gone back to my phone and my phone was flooded with notifications. Basically, people reaching out saying this kid that I didn't know had taken a photo off my Instagram and through AI-generated fake nudes and posted it to his Snapchat story for everyone to see,' said Brooke. Brooke was humiliated as the images spread like wildfire among her peers. 'I had people that I didn't know and that I did know reaching out saying, like, hey, I think this kid accidentally leaked this photo of you. And then that's when I had to be like, no, it's not real. I don't know who this kid is. Kind of just defend my reputation and my side,' said Brooke. She tried to reach out to the original poster directly and even his parents but got no response. Eventually, she told her parents. 'I was pretty upset. I won't use the word I want to use,' said former Mayor Curry. The Currys decided to press charges, and in the end, the teen who made the pictures pleaded guilty. But the damage had already been done. 'Multiple people got their hands on it, screenshotted it, and to this day I don't know who has it,' said Brooke. Creating and posting pornographic AI images of people is already a crime in Florida, but Brooke soon found out as far as social media platforms are concerned, there's no teeth in the law to ensure the content is taken down. '99% of deepfake pornography depicts women and the Department of Homeland Security has said it is a clear and present danger to the public and to society in general,' said State Representative Wyman Duggan (R-Jacksonville). Duggan is leading the charge to help victims take back some control, sponsoring 'Brooke's Law' this legislative session. The bill lays out how victims can petition social media companies to have unauthorized AI-generated content of themselves removed from the platforms, and allows victims to sue if the companies don't comply. 'You never get out from under it. And that's what we need to provide for these mostly very young women who are facing this trauma,' said Duggan. Until now, the Brooke behind Brooke's Law was anonymous, but during the bill's last stop in the House she shared her story publicly for the first time. 'I am very proud of her for coming out and sort of reliving it and bringing it up to help other people and to sponsor this bill and putting her story with the bill, I think helps quite a bit,' said Brooke's mother, Molly. Now, with the bill teed up for final votes in both chambers, Brooke and her family can look towards the future knowing they were able to take a horrible situation and generate positive change to help all victims moving forward. 'Get your parents involved, get the people around you that love you and care about you involved, as Brooke has done, take back control of yourself,' said former Mayor Curry. 'I'm very lucky to have them with connections because a normal person doesn't have that,' said Brooke. 'And that's why I want to go out and give my story and make people aware that you can take back control.' Representative Duggan told Action News Jax he expects the bill could make it to the Governor's desk as early as next week., [SIGN UP: Action News Jax Daily Headlines Newsletter] Click here to download the free Action News Jax news and weather apps, click here to download the Action News Jax Now app for your smart TV and click here to stream Action News Jax live.
