The House passed a bipartisan bill on Monday aimed at combating deep-wall porn and addressing a sensitive issue that has become an increasingly serious problem in the advancement of artificial intelligence.
President Donald Trump is expected to sign the measure, which passes the House of Representatives sailing with a 409-2 vote.
The Delete Act will criminalize the publication of involuntary, sexually explicit images and videos, including images and videos generated by AI, and require the platform to delete content within 48 hours of notification. The Senate passed legislation unanimously earlier this year.
Passing the bill is a rare feat of legislation in Congress, and it is well known that keeping up with the pace of technology is slow.
The effort attracted bipartisan support: R-Texas' Sens. TedCruz and D-Minn. Amy Klobuchar is the main sponsor of the Senate bill, while First Lady Melania Trump uses her platform to help it. President Trump touted the bill in a speech before Congress last month.
“Today’s bipartisan adoption of the Knockdown Act is a powerful statement that we immediately unify the dignity, privacy and security of our children,” Melania Trump said in a statement. “I thank the members of Congress, whether in the House or the Senate, for voting to protect the well-being of our youth.
Through this critical legislation, we continue to focus on the “best” and we are building a future where every child can thrive and reach their full potential. ”
Still, it attracted some opponents. Digital rights groups raised concerns that the current drafting of measures could threaten freedom of expression and privacy.
Rep. Thomas Massie, r-ky. , on Monday, voted on the bill as “slither slopes, maturity of abuse, with unexpected consequences.”
As AI develops, deep pornography and harassment have become increasingly common, including in schools. However, no federal law explicitly prohibits its use, making it more difficult to delete images or create and assign responsible persons.
One of the inspirations for the legislation was Texas teenager Elliston Berry, who woke up one morning in her first year of high school to learn that her male classmates had created her fake nude image and radiated it on social media.
"I was totally shocked," Berry, 14, said in an interview when the incident occurred. "Although it's not a child pornography at all. So we're in a gray area. No one knows what to do. The school doesn't know what to do. The local sheriff doesn't know what to do."
The images were eventually removed, but Berry and her mother felt that there were still obvious holes in the law and found that the responsibility system was difficult to achieve. So they have a connection with their hometown Senator Cruz, designed to prevent the same thing from happening to other victims. Berry is also the address where Melania Trump's guests attended the president's parade.
“The last thing I want to do is talk about it, but it’s super rehabilitating and encouraging to know that I can have these opportunities to talk about it and protect so many people and be that voice,” Berry said.