By Dylan Bettencourt
- Denmark plans to let people legally own the rights to their face, body and voice to stop AI from creating fake videos, images and sounds without consent.
- The law will allow anyone to demand takedowns of deepfake content and could lead to big fines for tech platforms that fail to act.
Denmark is set to become the first country in Europe to give people full rights to their own digital image and voice.
The government says new rules will stop people from being copied and misused online using artificial intelligence.
Culture Minister Jakob Engel-Schmidt said the law is meant to send a clear message: people must control how they look and sound online.
“Humans are being run through the digital copy machine and misused. I won’t accept that,” he said, The Guardian reported.
The law will treat fake videos, voices and images, known as deepfakes, as a form of copyright abuse.
That means people will be able to ask websites and social media to take down deepfakes of them. If they don’t, they could face heavy fines.
The law will also protect musicians, actors and other performers from having fake versions of their work shared without permission.
The government said comedy and satire will still be allowed.
Nine out of 10 members of Denmark’s parliament are backing the plan. A draft will be sent out for public comment before summer, and the final law will go to parliament in the autumn.
Denmark hopes other countries in Europe will follow its lead. Engel-Schmidt said he plans to push the idea when Denmark next leads the European Union.
Pictured above: Danish Culture Minister Jakob Engel-Schmidt.
Image source: @engelschmidt
