Danish minister seeks ban on sharing AI replicas without consent

Danish Culture Minister Zenia Stampe plans to introduce a bill on Thursday to protect people from realistic digital copies of their appearance and voice being shared without their consent, DR reports.

The bill aims to make social media companies and other platforms remove illegal deepfakes quickly. Stampe said AI makes it possible to create manipulated images and videos in just a few clicks, potentially spreading misinformation and making it harder to distinguish what is real.

Satire would remain permitted, though Stampe acknowledged that drawing the line could be difficult. She said courts would decide whether something was satire or whether satire was being used as an excuse for illegal content.

Stampe said she had experienced a picture from her profile being turned into a video that appeared to show her speaking. She described it as intrusive to see her face and body, and a picture she had taken herself, manipulated to make it seem as though she had said something she had not.

She also cited SF politician Karsten Hønge, who has been targeted in hundreds of false posts about Greenland.

The proposed protections would cover all citizens, including artists. For artists, they would also apply to digital copies of their performances shared without consent. Stampe hopes the law can take effect around the turn of the year.