Washington - The House passed a bipartisan bill on Monday, which made it a federal crime for those without their consent to post real and fake sexually explicit images online, and sent legislation backed by First Lady Melania Trump to the president's desk.

The bill, known as the "beat bill", cleared the House of Commons with a 409-2 vote. The two "no" votes came from Republicans. The Senate unanimously passed the measure in February.

The legislation requires social media companies and other websites to remove images and videos within 48 hours of victim request, including deep effects created by artificial intelligence.

"If you are the victim of a clear image generated by revenge porn or AI, your life will change forever," Sen. Ted Cruz, a Republican of Texas, said at the March 3 roundtable.

Cruz, who introduced the bill, recalls the experience of a teenage victim Elliston BerryTheir classmates use the app to create her explicit images and then send them to her classmates. Berry's mother tried to get Snapchat to delete the images for months, and then she contacted Cruz's office for help.

"This shouldn't require a current senator or MP to pick up the phone and put down the photos or videos," Cruz said.

The First Lady, who rarely appears in public, participated in March discussions at the U.S. Capitol, advocating for the passage of the bill in the House.

"It's heartbreaking to witness teenagers, especially girls, struggle with the overwhelming challenges facing malicious online content like Dark Fakes," she said. "This toxic environment can be severely damaged."

The first lady praised Congress after her approval and said that the bipartisan vote issued a "strong statement that we immediately unified the protection of the dignity, privacy and security of our children."

“I thank members of Congress, whether in the House or the Senate, for voting to protect the well-being of our youth,” she said in a statement.

According to the FBI, in recent years, a large number of cases have been extorted for suicide. Members said they hope the bill saves lives by providing victims with recourse.

Republican Rep. Maria Elvira Salazar of Florida announced the legislation in the House.

Meta, which owns Facebook and Instagram, as well as Tiktok and Snapchat, both said they support the legislation.

However, digital rights groups warn that written legislation could lead to suppression of legitimate speech, including legal pornography, and do not include protections for the revocation of bad faith.