I 

118TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 5586 

To protect national security against the threats posed by deepfake technology 

and to provide legal recourse to victims of harmful deepfakes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

SEPTEMBER 20, 2023 

Ms. CLARKE of New York (for herself and Mr. IVEY) introduced the following 

bill; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary, and in addition to the Committees on Energy and Commerce, and Homeland Security, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each 

case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of 

the committee concerned 

A BILL 

To protect national security against the threats posed by 

deepfake technology and to provide legal recourse to victims of harmful deepfakes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Defending Each and 

5 Every Person from False Appearances by Keeping Exploi6 tation Subject to Accountability Act of 2023’’ or the 

7 ‘‘DEEPFAKES Accountability Act’’. 


pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB
2 

•HR 5586 IH

1 SEC. 2. TRANSPARENCY REQUIREMENTS. 

2 (a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 47 of title 18, United 

3 States Code, is amended by adding at the end the fol4 lowing: 

5 ‘‘§ 1041. Advanced technological false personation 

6 record 

7 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in subsection 

8 (j), any person who, using any means or facility of inter9 state or foreign commerce, produces an advanced techno10 logical false personation record with the intent to dis11 tribute such record over the internet or knowledge that 

12 such record shall be so distributed, shall ensure such 

13 record, complies with— 

14 ‘‘(1) the requirement under subsection (b); and 

15 ‘‘(2)(A) in the case of an audiovisual record, 

16 the disclosure requirements under subsection (c); 

17 ‘‘(B) in the case of a visual record, the disclo18 sure requirements under subsection (d); or 

19 ‘‘(C) in the case of an audio record, the disclo20 sure requirements under subsection (e). 

21 ‘‘(b) CONTENT PROVENANCE.—Any advanced tech22 nological false personation record which contains a moving 

23 visual element shall contain technologies, such as content 

24 provenance technologies, that clearly identify such record 

25 as containing altered audio or visual elements, or as havVerDate Sep 11 2014 23:29 Sep 24, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5586.IH H5586

pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB
3 

•HR 5586 IH

1 ing been entirely created through generative artificial in2 telligence or similar technologies. 

3 ‘‘(c) AUDIOVISUAL DISCLOSURE.—Any advanced 

4 technological false personation records containing both an 

5 audio and a visual element shall include— 

6 ‘‘(1) not less than 1 clearly articulated verbal 

7 statement that identifies the record as containing al8 tered audio and visual elements, and a concise de9 scription of the extent of such alteration; 

10 ‘‘(2) an unobscured written statement in clearly 

11 readable text appearing at the bottom of the image 

12 throughout the duration of the visual element that 

13 identifies the record as containing altered audio and 

14 visual elements, and a concise description of the ex15 tent of such alteration; and 

16 ‘‘(3) a link, icon, or similar tool to signal that 

17 the content has been altered by, or is product of, 

18 generative artificial intelligence or similar tech19 nology. 

20 ‘‘(d) VISUAL DISCLOSURE.—Any advanced techno21 logical false personation records exclusively containing a 

22 visual element shall include an unobscured written state23 ment in clearly readable text appearing at the bottom of 

24 the image throughout the duration of the visual element 


pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB
4 

•HR 5586 IH

1 that identifies the record as containing altered visual ele2 ments, and either— 

3 ‘‘(1) a concise description of the extent of such 

4 alteration; or 

5 ‘‘(2) a clearly visible link, icon, or similar tool 

6 to signal that the content has been altered by, or is 

7 the product of, generative artificial intelligence or 

8 similar technology. 

9 ‘‘(e) AUDIO DISCLOSURE.—Any advanced techno10 logical false personation records exclusively containing an 

11 audio element shall include, at the beginning of such 

12 record, a clearly articulated verbal statement that identi13 fies the record as containing altered audio elements and 

14 a concise description of the extent of such alteration, and 

15 in the event such record exceeds two minutes in length, 

16 not less than 1 additional clearly articulated verbal state17 ment and additional concise description at some interval 

18 during each two-minute period thereafter. 

19 ‘‘(f) PENALTY.— 

20 ‘‘(1) CRIMINAL PENALTY.— 

21 ‘‘(A) FAILURE TO DISCLOSE.—Whoever 

22 knowingly fails to comply with the requirements 

23 under subsection (a)— 

24 ‘‘(i) with the intent to humiliate or 

25 otherwise harass the person falsely exhibVerDate Sep 11 2014 23:29 Sep 24, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5586.IH H5586

pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB
5 

•HR 5586 IH

1 ited, provided the advanced technological 

2 false personation record contains sexual 

3 content of a visual nature and appears to 

4 feature such person engaging in such sex5 ual acts or in a state of nudity; 

6 ‘‘(ii) with the intent to cause violence 

7 or physical harm, incite armed or diplo8 matic conflict, or interfere in an official 

9 proceeding, including an election, provided 

10 the advanced technological false 

11 personation record did in fact pose a cred12 ible threat of instigating or advancing 

13 such; 

14 ‘‘(iii) in the course of criminal conduct 

15 related to fraud, including securities fraud 

16 and wire fraud, false personation, or iden17 tity theft; or 

18 ‘‘(iv) by a foreign power, or an agent 

19 thereof, with the intent of influencing a do20 mestic public policy debate, interfering in a 

21 Federal, State, local, or territorial election, 

22 or engaging in other acts which such power 

23 may not lawfully undertake; 

24 shall be fined under this title, imprisoned for 

25 not more than 5 years, or both. 


pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB
6 

•HR 5586 IH

1 ‘‘(B) ALTERING DISCLOSURES.—Whoever 

2 knowingly alters an advanced technological false 

3 personation record to remove or meaningfully 

4 obscure the disclosures required under sub5 section (a) with the intent to distribute such al6 tered record and— 

7 ‘‘(i) with the intent to humiliate or 

8 otherwise harass the person falsely exhib9 ited, provided the advanced technological 

10 false personation record contains sexual 

11 content of a visual nature and appears to 

12 feature such person engaging in such sex13 ual acts or in a state of nudity; 

14 ‘‘(ii) with the intent to cause violence 

15 or physical harm, incite armed or diplo16 matic conflict, or interfere in an official 

17 proceeding, including an election, provided 

18 the advanced technological false 

19 personation record did in fact pose a cred20 ible threat of instigating or advancing 

21 such; 

22 ‘‘(iii) in the course of criminal conduct 

23 related to fraud, including securities fraud 

24 and wire fraud, false personation, or iden25 tity theft; or 


pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB
7 

•HR 5586 IH

1 ‘‘(iv) by a foreign power, or an agent 

2 thereof, with the intent of influencing a do3 mestic public policy debate, interfering in a 

4 Federal, State, local, or territorial election, 

5 or engaging in other acts which such power 

6 may not lawfully undertake; 

7 shall be fined under this title, imprisoned for 

8 not more than 5 years, or both. 

9 ‘‘(2) CIVIL PENALTY.— 

10 ‘‘(A) FAILURE TO DISCLOSE.—Any person 

11 who violates subsection (a) shall be subject to 

12 a civil penalty of up to $150,000 per record or 

13 alteration, as well as appropriate injunctive re14 lief. 

15 ‘‘(B) ALTERING DISCLOSURES.—Any per16 son who alters an advanced technological false 

17 personation record to remove or meaningfully 

18 obscure the disclosures required under sub19 section (a) with the intent to distribute such al20 tered record shall be subject to a civil penalty 

21 of up to $150,000 per record or alteration, as 

22 well as appropriate injunctive relief. 

23 ‘‘(g) PRIVATE RIGHT OF ACTION.— 

24 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Any person who has been 

25 exhibited as engaging in falsified material activity in 


pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB
8 

•HR 5586 IH

1 an advanced technological false personation record 

2 may bring a civil action before the appropriate Fed3 eral district court for damages under paragraph (2) 

4 and injunctive relief under paragraph (3) against a 

5 person who violates subsection (a) or alters an ad6 vanced technological false personation record to re7 move or meaningfully obscure the disclosures re8 quired under subsection (a). 

9 ‘‘(2) DAMAGES.—Damages shall consist of the 

10 greater of— 

11 ‘‘(A) actual damages suffered by the living 

12 person or the affiliated corporation or entity, 

13 and any additional substantially derivative prof14 its of the person who violated subsection (a) or 

15 altered an advanced technological false 

16 personation record to remove or meaningfully 

17 obscure the disclosures required under sub18 section (a); 

19 ‘‘(B) $50,000 per record, if the living per20 son or affiliated corporation or entity experi21 enced a perceptible individual harm or faced a 

22 tangible risk of experiencing such harm; 

23 ‘‘(C) $100,000 per record, if the living per24 son or affiliated corporation or entity experi25 enced a perceptible individual harm or faced a 


pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB
9 

•HR 5586 IH

1 tangible risk of experiencing such harm and the 

2 record purported to depict extreme or out3 rageous conduct by the living person; or 

4 ‘‘(D) $150,000 per record, if the advanced 

5 technological false personation record contains 

6 explicit sexual content of a visual nature in7 tended to humiliate or otherwise harass the per8 son falsely depicted as engaging in such sexual 

9 acts or in a state of nudity. 

10 ‘‘(3) INJUNCTIVE RELIEF.—Injunctive relief 

11 under this subsection shall include a requirement to 

12 comply with subsection (a). 

13 ‘‘(h) PRIVACY PROTECTIONS.— 

14 ‘‘(1) FEDERAL ACTIONS.—In enforcing this sec15 tion, the Attorney General shall, to the extent prac16 ticable, consult with living persons exhibited as en17 gaging in falsified material activity in advanced tech18 nological false personation records regarding meas19 ures the Attorney General can reasonably undertake 

20 to protect the privacy of such persons and minimize 

21 additional public viewings of such records. 

22 ‘‘(2) PRIVATE ACTIONS.—A court in which a 

23 private action is brought under subsection (g) shall 

24 permit the plaintiff, upon petition, to file the claim 

25 under seal if the plaintiff can demonstrate a reasonVerDate Sep 11 2014 23:29 Sep 24, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5586.IH H5586

pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB
10 

•HR 5586 IH

1 able likelihood that the creation of public records re2 garding the advanced technological false personation 

3 record would result in embarrassing or otherwise 

4 harmful publicization of the falsified material activ5 ity in an advanced technological false personation 

6 record. 

7 ‘‘(i) RULES OF CONSTRUCTION.— 

8 ‘‘(1) Nothing in this section shall be interpreted 

9 as authorizing the production of an advanced tech10 nological false personation record which includes dis11 closures if such record is otherwise prohibited by law 

12 or regulation. 

13 ‘‘(2) The word ‘advanced’ within the term ‘ad14 vanced technological false personation record’ shall 

15 not be interpreted as narrowing the definition of 

16 such term. 

17 ‘‘(3) Nothing in this section shall be interpreted 

18 as a defense against, or as preempting or limiting, 

19 any Federal, State, local, or territorial laws, regula20 tions, or policies that prohibit, impose more strin21 gent standards in relation to, or provide additional 

22 or alternative remedies or damages in relation to, 

23 the production or distribution of advanced techno24 logical false personation records, deepfakes, or re25 lated content, including criminal and civil laws relatVerDate Sep 11 2014 23:29 Sep 24, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5586.IH H5586

pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB
11 

•HR 5586 IH

1 ing to copyright, tortious conduct, and false 

2 personation. 

3 ‘‘(j) EXCEPTIONS.— 

4 ‘‘(1) DISCLOSURE.—The requirements under 

5 subsections (c), (d), and (e) shall not apply with re6 spect to any advanced technological false personation 

7 record— 

8 ‘‘(A) containing alternative disclosures re9 garding the falsity of the exhibited material ac10 tivities which a reasonable person would deem 

11 to be more prominent than those required 

12 under subsection (c), (d), or (e), as the case 

13 may be; 

14 ‘‘(B) during the process of producing such 

15 record, provided the ultimately distributed 

16 record is in compliance with such requirements; 

17 ‘‘(C) which primarily contains images or 

18 sound recordings of actual persons, such as per19 forming artists, and have not been substantially 

20 digitally modified; 

21 ‘‘(D) created in connection with editing a 

22 motion picture, television, music, or similar pro23 duction or creating a derivative production 

24 thereof, the original content of which was cre25 ated prior to the enactment of this section, in 


pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB
12 

•HR 5586 IH

1 which the person appearing provided consent to 

2 their original appearance; 

3 ‘‘(E) appearing in a context such that a 

4 reasonable person would not mistake the fal5 sified material activity for actual material activ6 ity of the exhibited living person, such as par7 ody shows or publications, historical reenact8 ments, or fictionalized radio, television, or mo9 tion picture programming; or 

10 ‘‘(F) produced by an officer or employee of 

11 the United States, or under the authority there12 of, in furtherance of public safety or national 

13 security. 

14 ‘‘(2) DIGITAL CONTENT PROVENANCE.—The 

15 digital content provenance requirement under sub16 section (b) shall not apply with respect to any class 

17 of advanced technological false personation records 

18 which the Attorney General determines by regulation 

19 should be excluded from such requirement. 

20 ‘‘(k) ADVISORY OPINIONS, WAIVER, AND STAND21 ARDS.— 

22 ‘‘(1) ADVISORY OPINIONS.—The Attorney Gen23 eral shall— 

24 ‘‘(A) establish a process by which any pro25 ducer of audio, visual, or audiovisual content 


pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB
13 

•HR 5586 IH

1 may seek an advisory opinion from the Attorney 

2 General regarding whether their proposed pro3 duction is required to comply with the require4 ments under this section; 

5 ‘‘(B) respond to a request described in 

6 subparagraph (A) not later than 30 days after 

7 the date of submission; and 

8 ‘‘(C) not pursue enforcement action under 

9 this section against any producer who relied in 

10 good faith on such an advisory opinion. 

11 ‘‘(2) WAIVER.—The Attorney General is au12 thorized to grant, and shall establish and publish 

13 procedures to govern the issuance of, waivers from 

14 any requirements under this section to additional 

15 categories of advanced technological false 

16 personation records upon petition of any producer 

17 thereof if such producer can demonstrate that com18 pliance with this section would impede their ability 

19 to engage in lawful activities protected by the First 

20 Amendment of the Constitution. 

21 ‘‘(3) DIGITAL CONTENT PROVENANCE STAND22 ARDS.—Not later than 1 year after the date of en23 actment of this section, the Attorney General shall 

24 issue rules governing the technical specifications of 

25 the digital content provenance required under subVerDate Sep 11 2014 23:29 Sep 24, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00013 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5586.IH H5586

pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB
14 

•HR 5586 IH

1 section (b) which stall include, if such is determined 

2 appropriate, a requirement for such digital content 

3 provenance to contain embedded or linked metadata. 

4 ‘‘(l) VENUE.—Any action under this section may be 

5 brought, in addition to in any district otherwise described 

6 in section 1391 of title 28, in the district where or the 

7 person falsely depicted in the advanced technological false 

8 personation record resides. 

9 ‘‘(m) EXTRATERRITORIALITY.—There is 

10 extraterritorial Federal jurisdiction over an offense under 

11 this section if the defendant or the depicted person is a 

12 citizen or permanent resident of the United States. 

13 ‘‘(n) DEFINITIONS.— 

14 ‘‘(1) ADVANCED TECHNOLOGICAL FALSE

15 PERSONATION RECORD.—The term ‘advanced tech16 nological false personation record’ means any 

17 deepfake, which— 

18 ‘‘(A) a reasonable person, having consid19 ered the visual or audio qualities of the record 

20 and the nature of the distribution channel in 

21 which the record appears, would believe accu22 rately exhibits— 

23 ‘‘(i) any material activity of a living 

24 person which such living person did not in 

25 fact undertake; or 


pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB
15 

•HR 5586 IH

1 ‘‘(ii) any material activity of a de2 ceased person which such deceased person 

3 did not in fact undertake, and the exhi4 bition of which is substantially likely to ei5 ther further a criminal act or result in im6 proper interference in an official pro7 ceeding, a public policy debate, or an elec8 tion; and 

9 ‘‘(B) was produced without the consent of 

10 such living person, or in the case of a deceased 

11 person, such person or the heirs thereof. 

12 ‘‘(2) MATERIAL ACTIVITY.—The term ‘material 

13 activity’ means any speech, conduct, or depiction 

14 which causes, or a reasonable person would recog15 nize has a tendency to cause perceptible individual 

16 or societal harm, including misrepresentation, 

17 reputational damage, embarrassment, harassment, 

18 financial losses, the incitement of violence, the alter19 ation of a public policy debate or election, or the fur20 therance of any unlawful act. 

21 ‘‘(3) DEEPFAKE.—The term ‘deepfake’ means 

22 any video recording, motion-picture film, sound re23 cording, electronic image, or photograph, or any 

24 technological representation of speech or conduct 

25 substantially derivative thereof— 


pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB
16 

•HR 5586 IH

1 ‘‘(A) which appears to authentically depict 

2 any speech or conduct of a person who did not 

3 in fact engage in such speech or conduct; and 

4 ‘‘(B) the production of which was substan5 tially dependent upon technical means, rather 

6 than the ability of another person to physically 

7 or verbally impersonate such person. 

8 ‘‘(o) REPORTS.—The Attorney General, in coordina9 tion with other relevant Federal agencies, shall submit a 

10 report to Congress 5 years after the date of enactment 

11 of this section, and 5 years thereafter, describing trends 

12 related to prosecutions and civil penalties pursued under 

13 this section. 

14 ‘‘§ 1042. Deepfakes victim assistance 

15 ‘‘(a) COORDINATOR FOR VIOLATIONS DIRECTED BY

16 FOREIGN NATION-STATES.—The Attorney General shall 

17 designate a coordinator in each United States Attorney’s 

18 Office to receive reports from the public regarding poten19 tial violations of section 1041 relating to deepfake depic20 tions produced or distributed by any foreign nation-state, 

21 or any agent acting on its behalf, and coordinate prosecu22 tions for any such violation. 

23 ‘‘(b) COORDINATOR FOR FALSE INTIMATE DEPIC24 TIONS.—The Attorney General shall designate a coordi25 nator in each United States Attorney’s Office to receive 


pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB
17 

•HR 5586 IH

1 reports from the public regarding potential violations of 

2 section 1041 relating to deepfake depictions of an intimate 

3 and sexual nature, and coordinate prosecutions for any 

4 such violation. 

5 ‘‘(c) PLAN AND GUIDANCE.—On the effective date of 

6 this section, the Attorney General shall publish a report 

7 containing— 

8 ‘‘(1) a plan to effectuate and enforce section 

9 1041; 

10 ‘‘(2) a description of the efforts of the Russian 

11 Federation and the People’s Republic of China, and 

12 such other states or groups as the Attorney General 

13 determines appropriate, to use deepfake technology 

14 to impact elections or public policy debates in the 

15 United States or other democracies; 

16 ‘‘(3) a description of the impact of intimate and 

17 sexual deepfakes on women and marginalized com18 munities; and 

19 ‘‘(4) in order to increase the likelihood of such 

20 prosecutions, official guidance to Federal prosecu21 tors regarding any potential legal concerns that may 

22 impede such prosecutions absent clarification.’’. 

23 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections 

24 for chapter 47 of title 18, United States Code, is amended 

25 by adding at the end the following: 


pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB
18 

•HR 5586 IH

‘‘1041. Advanced technological false personation record. 

‘‘1042. Deepfakes victim assistance.’’. 

1 SEC. 3. TRANSPARENCY FACILITATION. 

2 (a) IN GENERAL.—Any person who, in or affecting 

3 interstate or foreign commerce, for commercial purposes, 

4 develops a product that such person reasonably believes, 

5 in the context of the intended distribution of the product, 

6 will be used to produce deepfakes, as such term is defined 

7 in section 1041 of title 18, United States Code, as added 

8 by this Act, shall— 

9 (1) ensure such product has the technical capa10 bility to insert digital content provenance and disclo11 sures of the nature described in such section into 

12 such deepfakes; and 

13 (2) include terms of use or other analogous dis14 closures with such product, which require the user of 

15 such product to affirmatively acknowledge their gen16 eral awareness of their legal obligations under sec17 tion 1041 of title 18, United States Code. 

18 (b) ENFORCEMENT BY FEDERAL TRADE COMMIS19 SION.— 

20 (1) UNFAIR OR DECEPTIVE ACTS OR PRAC21 TICES.—A violation of this section or a regulation 

22 promulgated under this section shall be treated as a 

23 violation of a regulation under section 18(a)(1)(B) 

24 of the Federal Trade Commission Act (15 U.S.C. 


pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB
19 

•HR 5586 IH

1 57a(a)(1)(B)) regarding unfair or deceptive acts or 

2 practices. 

3 (2) POWERS OF COMMISSION.—The Federal 

4 Trade Commission shall enforce this section and the 

5 regulations promulgated under this section in the 

6 same manner, by the same means, and with the 

7 same jurisdiction, powers, and duties as though all 

8 applicable terms and provisions of the Federal Trade 

9 Commission Act (15 U.S.C. 41 et seq.) were incor10 porated into and made a part of this section. Any 

11 person who violates this section or a regulation pro12 mulgated under this section shall be subject to the 

13 penalties and entitled to the privileges and immuni14 ties provided in the Federal Trade Commission Act. 

15 (3) RULEMAKING.—The Federal Trade Com16 mission may promulgate regulations, in accordance 

17 with section 553 of title 5, United States Code, to 

18 implement this section. 

19 SEC. 4. IN REM LITIGATION AGAINST FOREIGN AND UN20 KNOWN DEFENDANTS. 

21 (a) IN GENERAL.—A living person, or an affiliated 

22 corporate or other entity substantially connected to such 

23 living person, exhibited as engaging in falsified material 

24 activity in an advanced technological false personation 

25 record (as such term is defined in section 1041 of title 


pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB
20 

•HR 5586 IH

1 18, United States Code), and subject to the exceptions 

2 under section 1041(j) of such title, may file an in rem 

3 civil action against an advanced technological false 

4 personation record, in the judicial district in which such 

5 living person or related entity resides, if— 

6 (1) the producer of such advanced technological 

7 false personation record is in violation of any provi8 sion in section 1041 of title 18, United States Code, 

9 for which a private remedy is provided; and 

10 (2) the court finds that such living person or 

11 related entity— 

12 (A) is not able to obtain in personam juris13 diction over a person who would have been a 

14 defendant in a civil action in section 1041 of 

15 title 18, United States Code, as added by sec16 tion 2 of this Act; or 

17 (B) through reasonable due diligence was 

18 not able to find a person who would have been 

19 a defendant in a civil action under paragraph 

20 (1) by— 

21 (i) if practicable, sending a notice of 

22 the alleged violation and intent to proceed 

23 under this paragraph to the producer of 

24 the record; 


pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB
21 

•HR 5586 IH

1 (ii) publishing notice of the action as 

2 the court may direct promptly after filing 

3 the action; and 

4 (iii) complying with such other due 

5 diligence measures the Attorney General 

6 promulgates through regulation. 

7 (b) SERVICE OF PROCESS.—The actions under sub8 section (a)(2)(B)(ii) shall constitute service of process. 

9 (c) JURISDICTION.—In an in rem action under this 

10 section, an advanced false personation record shall be 

11 deemed to have its situs in the judicial district in which 

12 the person falsely depicted as engaging in material activity 

13 resides. 

14 (d) REMEDIES.—The remedies in an in rem action 

15 under this section shall be limited to— 

16 (1) a court order declaring there to be a sub17 stantial likelihood that the material activity depicted 

18 in such advanced technological false personation 

19 record is false and lacking the digital content prove20 nance and disclosures required under section 1041 

21 of title 18, United States Code, as added by section 

22 2 of this Act; and 

23 (2) as appropriate at the discretion of the 

24 court, the forfeiture by the producer of such ad25 vanced technological false personation record of 


pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB
22 

•HR 5586 IH

1 profits directly derived from the production and dis2 tribution of such record. 

3 (e) ESTOPPEL AND ADDITIONAL REMEDIES.—A 

4 court order under subsection (d) may not be used for pur5 poses of estoppel in subsequent litigation should the living 

6 person or related entity bringing suit file additional ac7 tions under other provisions of law. The in rem action es8 tablished under this Act shall be in addition to any other 

9 civil action or remedy otherwise applicable and any other 

10 jurisdiction that otherwise exists, whether in rem or in 

11 personam. 

12 SEC. 5. FRAUD AND RELATED ACTIVITY IN CONNECTION 

13 WITH AUDIOVISUAL AND BIOMETRIC IDEN14 TITY AUTHENTICATION. 

15 (a) OFFENSE.—Section 1028 of title 18, United 

16 States Code, is amended— 

17 (1) in subsection (a)— 

18 (A) in paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘or a 

19 false identification document’’ and inserting ‘‘a 

20 false identification document, or a false audio21 visual identification record’’; 

22 (B) in paragraph (4), by striking ‘‘or a 

23 false identification document,’’ and inserting ‘‘a 

24 false identification document, or a false audio25 visual identification record,’’; and 


pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB
23 

•HR 5586 IH

1 (C) in paragraph (5), by striking ‘‘a false 

2 identification document’’ and inserting ‘‘a false 

3 identification document, false audiovisual iden4 tification record’’; 

5 (2) in subsection (b)(1)(A), by striking ‘‘or false 

6 identification document’’ and inserting ‘‘a false iden7 tification document, or a false audiovisual identifica8 tion record’’; 

9 (3) in subsection (c)(3)(A), by inserting after 

10 ‘‘a document’’ the following: ‘‘or a false audiovisual 

11 identification record’’; and 

12 (4) in subsection (d)— 

13 (A) in paragraph (1), insert after ‘‘let14 ters,’’ the following: ‘‘biometric indicators’’; 

15 (B) in paragraph (7), insert after ‘‘other 

16 unique physical representation’’ the following: 

17 ‘‘including facial dimensions or characteristics, 

18 or visual imagery or content which appears to 

19 authentically depict any speech or conduct of a 

20 person who did not in fact engage in such 

21 speech or conduct’’; 

22 (C) in paragraph (11), strike ‘‘and’’ at the 

23 end; 

24 (D) in paragraph (12)(B), strike the pe25 riod at the end and insert ‘‘; and’’; and 


pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB
24 

•HR 5586 IH

1 (E) by adding at the end the following: 

2 ‘‘(13) The term ‘false audiovisual identification 

3 record’ means any advanced technological false 

4 personation record (as such term is defined in sec5 tion 1041)— 

6 ‘‘(A) used or attempted to be used by a 

7 person for the purpose of assuming the identity 

8 of the person depicted in the advanced techno9 logical false personation record without such 

10 other person’s consent; and 

11 ‘‘(B)(i) the use or attempted use of which 

12 is intended to further any unlawful activity that 

13 constitutes a violation of Federal law, or that 

14 constitutes a felony under any applicable State, 

15 territorial, or local law; 

16 ‘‘(ii) depicts obscenity or sexually ex17 plicit conduct, considering the extent to 

18 which the record appeals to the prurient 

19 interest, is patently offensive, and lacks se20 rious literary, artistic, political, or sci21 entific value; 

22 ‘‘(iii) depicts fighting words, which by 

23 their very utterance, inflict injury or tend 

24 to incite an immediate breach of the peace; 


pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB
25 

•HR 5586 IH

1 ‘‘(iv) constitutes a call to imminent 

2 lawless action, and is likely, whether on its 

3 own or collectively in connection with re4 lated records, to incite or produce such ac5 tion; or 

6 ‘‘(v) depicts or constitutes other ac7 tivities or speech that the Attorney General 

8 determines by regulation pose a credible 

9 threat to the national interests of the 

10 United States, which, as of the date of 

11 such regulation, have been determined by a 

12 Federal court to constitute an unprotected 

13 class of speech under the first amend14 ment.’’. 

15 (b) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—The amendments 

16 made by subsection (a) may not be interpreted as impos17 ing any limitations on the applicability of section 1028 of 

18 title 18, United States Code, to any item which was cov19 ered by such section prior to the date of enactment of this 

20 Act. 

21 SEC. 6. FALSE PERSONATION. 

22 (a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 43 of title 18 of the 

23 United States Code is amended by adding at the end a 

24 new section as follows: 


pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB
26 

•HR 5586 IH

1 ‘‘§ 918. Deepfake false personation generally 

2 ‘‘Section 911 through 917 of this chapter shall be in3 terpreted to include producers, or persons who substan4 tially and knowingly contribute to the production and un5 lawful use of, advanced technological false personation 

6 records (as such term is defined in section 1041), subject 

7 to the exceptions under section 4041(j).’’. 

8 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections 

9 for chapter 43 of title 18, United States Code, is amended 

10 by adding at the end the following: 

‘‘918. Deepfake false personation generally.’’. 

11 SEC. 7. DETECTION OF DEEPFAKES. 

12 (a) ESTABLISHMENT OF TASK FORCE.—The Sec13 retary of Homeland Security, in coordination with the 

14 heads of other relevant Federal entities, shall establish a 

15 task force within the Science and Technology Directorate 

16 of the Department of Homeland Security (in this section 

17 referred to as the ‘‘Deepfakes Task Force’’), to— 

18 (1) advance efforts of the United States Gov19 ernment to combat the national security implications 

20 of deepfakes; 

21 (2) as appropriate, research and develop tech22 nologies to detect, or otherwise counter and combat, 

23 deepfakes and other advanced image manipulation 

24 methods and distinguish such deepfakes or related 


pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB
27 

•HR 5586 IH

1 forgeries from legitimate audiovisual recordings or 

2 visual depictions of actual events; 

3 (3) provide support, both administrative and 

4 scientific, to other Federal entities researching such 

5 technologies; 

6 (4) encourage efforts of the United States Gov7 ernment to adopt such technologies; and 

8 (5) facilitate discussion and appropriate co9 operation between the United States Government 

10 and relevant private sector technology enterprises or 

11 other nongovernmental entities, including academic 

12 and research institutions, regarding the identifica13 tion of deepfakes or other advanced image manipula14 tion methods. 

15 (b) PRIVATE SECTOR COLLABORATION.—If the 

16 United States Government develops technologies to reli17 ably detect deepfakes and other advanced image manipula18 tion methods and distinguish such deepfakes or related 

19 forgeries from legitimate audiovisual recordings or visual 

20 depictions of actual events, the President shall, unless the 

21 President determines such is contrary to the national in22 terests of the United States, seek to make such tech23 nologies available to appropriate United States private 

24 sector internet platforms, including social networks. 


pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB
28 

•HR 5586 IH

1 (c) ANNUAL REPORT.—Not later than one year after 

2 the date of the enactment of this Act and annually there3 after for five years, the Secretary of Homeland Security 

4 shall submit to the Committee on Homeland Security of 

5 the House of Representatives and the Committee on 

6 Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs of the Sen7 ate an unclassified report, which may contain a classified 

8 annex, describing the following: 

9 (1) The activities of the Deepfakes Task Force. 

10 (2) As appropriate, technological progress re11 lated to the detection of deepfakes and other ad12 vanced image manipulation methods. 

13 (3) New developments related to the national 

14 security threat posed by deepfakes and other ad15 vanced image manipulation methods, which shall in16 clude a description of any efforts of the Russian 

17 Federation and the People’s Republic of China, and 

18 such other countries or groups as the Secretary de19 termines appropriate, to distribute deepfakes or re20 lated forgeries in the United States or other democ21 racies. 

22 (4) Related efforts of the United States to com23 bat and counter deepfakes and other advanced 

24 image manipulation methods. 


pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB
29 

•HR 5586 IH

1 (d) DEFINITION.—The term ‘‘deepfake’’ shall have 

2 the meaning given such term in section 1041 of title 18, 

3 United States Code, as added by section 2 of this Act. 

4 SEC. 8. CONGRESSIONAL NOTIFICATION. 

5 The Secretary of Homeland Security shall annually 

6 submit to the Committee on Homeland Security of the 

7 House of Representatives and the Committee on Home8 land Security and Governmental Affairs of the Senate a 

9 classified written notification and, upon request, a brief10 ing, regarding any known attempts of foreign countries 

11 to use deepfakes (as such term is defined in section 1041 

12 of title 18, United States Code, as added by section 2 of 

13 this Act) or other advanced image manipulation methods 

14 to influence or otherwise interfere in an official proceeding 

15 within the United States, including an election. 

16 SEC. 9. INFORMATION SHARING. 

17 The Secretary of Homeland Security shall take such 

18 actions as may be necessary to establish in the Depart19 ment of Homeland Security an information sharing pro20 gram relating to deepfakes (as such term is defined in sec21 tion 1041 of title 18, United States Code, as added by 

22 section 2 of this Act) and other advanced image manipula23 tion methods to permit online platforms (as defined in sec24 tion 10(d) of this Act) to alert other such platforms to 

25 prevent the spread of a malicious deepfake or other related 


pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB
30 

•HR 5586 IH

1 forgery, as well as to promptly alert for public dissemina2 tion news organizations regarding such deepfake or re3 lated forgery. 

4 SEC. 10. REQUIREMENTS FOR ONLINE PLATFORMS. 

5 (a) TECHNICAL CAPABILITY RELATING TO DIGITAL

6 CONTENT PROVENANCE.—A provider of an online plat7 form shall ensure such platform has the technical capa8 bility to insert digital content provenance and disclosures 

9 of the nature described in section 1041 of title 18, United 

10 States Code, as added by this Act, into any deepfakes that 

11 are distributed on such platform. 

12 (b) SYSTEM TO DETECT DEEPFAKES.—A provider of 

13 an online platform shall have in place a system to detect 

14 deepfakes in the content distributed on such platform. 

15 (c) ENFORCEMENT BY FEDERAL TRADE COMMIS16 SION.— 

17 (1) UNFAIR OR DECEPTIVE ACTS OR PRAC18 TICES.—A violation of this section or a regulation 

19 promulgated under this section shall be treated as a 

20 violation of a regulation under section 18(a)(1)(B) 

21 of the Federal Trade Commission Act (15 U.S.C. 

22 57a(a)(1)(B)) regarding unfair or deceptive acts or 

23 practices. 

24 (2) POWERS OF COMMISSION.—The Federal 

25 Trade Commission shall enforce this section and the 


pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB
31 

•HR 5586 IH

1 regulations promulgated under this section in the 

2 same manner, by the same means, and with the 

3 same jurisdiction, powers, and duties as though all 

4 applicable terms and provisions of the Federal Trade 

5 Commission Act (15 U.S.C. 41 et seq.) were incor6 porated into and made a part of this section. Any 

7 person who violates this section or a regulation pro8 mulgated under this section shall be subject to the 

9 penalties and entitled to the privileges and immuni10 ties provided in the Federal Trade Commission Act. 

11 (3) RULEMAKING.—The Federal Trade Com12 mission may promulgate regulations, in accordance 

13 with section 553 of title 5, United States Code, to 

14 implement this section. 

15 (d) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

16 (1) DEEPFAKE.—The term ‘‘deepfake’’ has the 

17 meaning given such term in section 1041 of title 18, 

18 United States Code, as added by this Act. 

19 (2) ONLINE PLATFORM.—The term ‘‘online 

20 platform’’ means any public-facing website, online 

21 service, online application, or mobile application 

22 which is operated for commercial purposes and pro23 vides a community forum for user-generated content, 

24 including a social network site, content aggregation 


pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB
32 

•HR 5586 IH

1 service, or service for sharing videos, images, games, 

2 audio files, or other content. 

3 SEC. 11. EFFECTIVE DATE. 

4 This Act and the amendments made by this Act shall 

5 take effect on the date that is one year after the date of 

6 enactment of this Act. 

Æ 


pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB