Denmark will give people copyright over their own faces and voices in a bid to fight the rise of AI-generated deepfakes.
On Thursday, the Danish government announced plans to strengthen protections against digital impersonation, in what it says is the first law of its kind in Europe, according to a report by The Guardian.
Denmark intends to amend its copyright law to give individuals ownership rights over their own body, facial features, and voice. The proposed changes would allow people to request the removal of AI-generated content that uses their likeness without consent and seek compensation.
‘Everybody Has a Right to Their Own Body’
The government says the aim is to stop the spread of AI-generated deepfakes by legally recognizing a person’s right to control how their image and voice are used. According to The Guardian, Denmark defines a deepfake as a highly realistic digital representation of a person, including their appearance and voice.
“In the bill, we agree and are sending an unequivocal message that everybody has the right to their own body, their own voice, and their own facial features, which is apparently not how the current law is protecting people against generative AI,” the Danish culture minister Jakob Engel-Schmidt tells The Guardian.
“Human beings can be run through the digital copy machine and be misused for all sorts of purposes and I’m not willing to accept that.”
The government says the amended copyright laws will send an “unequivocal message” to AI companies and will give Danish people the right to demand that online platforms remove deepfakes if they are shared without consent.
“Of course, this is new ground we are breaking, and if the platforms are not complying with that, we are willing to take additional steps,” Engel-Schmidt tells the news outlet.
The Danish culture minister says that tech platforms that don’t follow the new rules could be heavily fined, and the issue might be brought to the European Commission. He plans to share Denmark’s approach with other EU countries when Denmark takes over the EU presidency, hoping more nations will adopt similar laws.
Engel-Schmidt also said the amended law will not apply to parody or satire, which will still be allowed.
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