Britain is set to introduce criminal charges against individuals who create and distribute sexually explicit deepfake images, marking a significant step toward better protecting women and girls, a government minister announced Tuesday.
The planned reforms, part of the forthcoming Crime and Policing Bill, will also criminalize taking intimate images without consent and installing equipment to facilitate such acts, with offenders facing up to two years in prison, according to the Ministry of Justice.
While it is already an offence to share or threaten to share intimate images, current laws only cover the creation of such images in limited scenarios, such as upskirting. Victims Minister Alex Davies-Jones said the changes aim to close these legal gaps, describing the current situation as “horrific” for women and girls.
“One in three women in the UK has been a victim of intimate images being made or shared without their consent,” Davies-Jones told Sky News. “These crimes make women vulnerable and intimidated, and perpetrators deserve to feel the full force of the law.”
Deepfakes—hyper-realistic images or videos generated using artificial intelligence—have surged in popularity, with tools becoming more accessible. Advocacy groups have flagged this trend as a growing threat, with devastating consequences for victims.
Campaigner Jess Davies described intimate-image abuse as a “national emergency,” while Rebecca Hitchen, head of policy at the End Violence Against Women Coalition, urged the government to accelerate the reforms.
The Ministry of Justice has not yet provided a timeline for the introduction of the new offences, stating only that the bill will be unveiled “when parliamentary time allows.”