By Lara Korte | Politico
A state lawmaker from Silicon Valley wants to crack down on AI-generated depictions of child sexual abuse as tech companies face growing scrutiny nationally over their moderation of illicit content.
A new bill from Democratic Assemblymember Marc Berman, first reported in California Playbook, would update the state’s penal code to criminalize the production, distribution or possession of such material, even if it’s fictitious. Among the backers is Common Sense Media, the nonprofit founded by Jim Steyer that for years has advocated for cyber protections for children and their privacy.
The legislation has the potential to open up a new avenue of complaints against social media companies, who are already battling criticisms that they don’t do enough to eradicate harmful material from their websites. It’s one of at least a dozen proposals California lawmakers will consider this year to set limits on artificial intelligence.
Berman’s bill builds on a bipartisan law signed by Gov. Gavin Newsom last year that requires social media platforms to do more to combat child sexual abuse material — and allows victims to sue the companies for deploying features that led to commercial sexual exploitation.
“New AI tools have make it easier for the anyone to create psudo-realistic images and video with minimal technical skills. As with any new New AI tools have make it easier for the anyone to create psudo-realistic images and technology, bad actors will look for ways to use these tools for bad purposes. Image diffusion products are allowing a new breed of crimes—including celebrity deep-fake ad scams, falsified “revenge porn” images, and child sexual assault materials. These new kinds of crimes will require new crime-fighting legislations, but government has a poor history of effectively regulating tech advancements without stepping on adjacent, legitimate uses of the tech.”
-Paul Coble, Chair of Rose Law Group’s intellectual property department
