Two bipartisan House lawmakers are introducing a bill that would provide Section 230 protections to tech companies that fail to remove private AI deepfakes from their platforms.
Reps. Jack Auchincloss (D-MA) and Ashley Hinson (R-IA) unveiled the Intimate Privacy Protection Act, Politico As stated in the bill, the purpose of First Report is to “combat online tracking, invasion of intimate privacy and digital forgery.” The bill amends Section 230 of the Communications Act of 1934, which currently protects online platforms from legal liability for content posted by their users on their services. Under the Privacy Protection Act, this immunity may be revoked if the platform fails to address the types of harm listed. It does this by placing a duty of care on platforms – a legal term that basically means they should act responsibly – which includes putting in place “reasonable procedures” to address online tracking, privacy intrusions and digital Forgery problem.
Digital forgeries appear to include artificial intelligence deepfakes, as they are defined in part as “digital audiovisual materials” that are “created, manipulated, or altered to be virtually indistinguishable from authentic records of an individual’s words, actions, or appearance.” The process imposed by the duty of care must include measures to prevent such privacy intrusions, a clear way to report such behavior and a process for removing it within 24 hours.
Auchincloss and Hinson said in a statement that technology platforms should not use Section 230 as an excuse not to protect users from these harms. “Congress must prevent these companies from escaping responsibility for the sickening spread of malicious deepfakes and digital forgeries on their platforms,” Auchincloss said. Hinson added, “If big tech companies can’t protect users from deepfakes and other private privacy invasion, then they should not hide behind Section 230.”
Lawmakers on both sides of the aisle have long wanted to narrow the scope of Section 230 protections for the platforms, which they worry are abusing the legal shield created for an industry made up of much smaller players. But most of the time, Republicans and Democrats can’t agree on exactly how to change the regulations. One notable exception is Congress’ passage of FOSTA-SESTA, which excluded sex trafficking charges from Section 230 protections.
The duty of care contained in the Intimate Privacy Protection Act is the same mechanism used in the Children’s Online Safety Act, which is expected to pass the Senate with overwhelming support on Tuesday. This may indicate that it is becoming a popular way to create new protections on the Internet.
