What to do if someone creates fake nude AI images of you

In recent years, Artificial Intelligence (AI) has become part of daily life for a huge number of people, often put to positive use such as speeding up data analysis, or helping with scientific breakthroughs. 

However, as AI can create highly realistic text, audio and video, it has been increasingly misused to create pornographic images of real people, and to "nudify" images taken from their social media accounts.

What is deepfake pornography?

Deepfake pornography is a term used to describe explicit images or videos which have been digitally created rather than filmed with a real life subject. It can also be described as intimate image abuse, image based abuse, or revenge porn. As deepfake pornography often uses the face of a real person (sometimes featuring a celebrity, but often not), they can be extremely damaging, demeaning and distressing for victims. 

It is estimated than in the UK, around 8 million deepfake images are shared every year, 95% of which target women. As it is currently impossible to stop the creation of such images, and the owners of AI platforms have taken very few steps to curb this activity, the number is expected to grow at an exponential rate unless the law intervenes.

Is deepfake pornography illegal in the UK?

Deepfake pornography is illegal if:

• an image of a real person is used to create a deepfake picture or video, without their consent;
• an indecent image of someone who is under 18 is made or shared; or 
• an AI generated or manipulated explicit image depicting a person is shared, or someone threatens to share it. 

If this has happened to you, you should report it to the police immediately. 

What does nudification of images mean?

Nudified images are a type of deepfake pornography, where a real picture of someone is altered using AI to make them appear wholly or partially undressed. The original images are often taken from the victim's own social media accounts. 

This particularly unpleasant form of deepfake pornography has mainly been used to create abusive and explicit images of women and children. 

Why are deepfakes in the news?

Labour MP Jess Asato has started a claim for damages against Elon Musk after his AI platform Grok was used to create digitally manipulated and humiliating images of her. She is “seeking damages and aims to create a precedent for companies to be liable for their design”. 

Following the filing of Asato’s claim she experienced a surge of online abuse, renewed harassment and the publication of further non consensual sexual AI images of her. Asato stated: “I was by no means the worst victim affected but it made me feel dehumanised, it made me feel demeaned. My consent had not been gained and I had been stripped of my clothes”.

If her claim is successful, it will set a precedent for many millions of people who have been victims of deepfake pornography and nudification of their images, to bring claims against the AI platforms which enabled the images to be created. 

What can I do if someone made fake nude photos of me?

If someone has used your image to make a fake nude photograph or image of you, and has published it or threatened to publish it, you should report them to the police. 

You may also be able to bring a claim against them for damages, as your privacy is likely to have been breached. It is also possible your claim could involve compensation for breach of copyright, if the defendant used an image which was taken by someone else. 

In the future, if Jess Asato's pioneering claim is successful, you may also be able to bring a claim against the AI platform which was used to create the image of you. 

How Samuels can help you claim compensation for deepfakes

If your image was used in a deepfake image or video, or if your photo was used to create pornography, you should seek legal advice as quickly as possible. If you need a deepfake pornography solicitor or an intimate image abuse lawyer in the UK, we will be able to help. 

At Samuels Solicitors LLP, we have a team of dedicated lawyers who have dealt with claims involving image based abuse and revenge pornography for many years. We can help you get images removed from websites at the same time as preserving the evidence you need to bring a claim for compensation against a person who created the fake nude images of you. 

Contact us today to find out what the next steps are. 

Article credit: Simran Patel

FAQs: Deepfake Pornography and Nudified Images

These are commonly asked questions about deepfake pornography and images which have been manipulated to make them explicit.

1. What should I do if photos of me have been manipulated and sent around online? You can report any deepfakes that breach guidelines directly to the social media platform. This should flag the original posters account for suspension or deletion. You should also take legal advice as quickly as possible to find out if you are able to bring a claim for damages.
2. Can I go to the police if fake nude photos of me have been made? Yes. You can report a deepfake or nudified to the police either online or by visiting a police station.
3. Can I claim for damages if a deepfake is made of me? Yes, you can bring a claim for compensation against the person who has created the fake explicit image of you, provided they made it without your consent, has published it without your consent, or is threatening to publish it. You could possibly claim for breach of privacy and seek damages and an injunction.
4. What should I do if someone repeatedly makes fake images of me? If someone continually makes fake images of you and threatens to publish them, or posts them online, you could bring a claim against them for harassment. This behaviour could also be reported to the police
5. Can I bring a claim for damages if a fake image of me is created but not shared? Yes, you can, however it will depends entirely on what the deepfake depicts and how the deepfake was created. You should take legal advice from an expert solicitor to see whether a claim is possible in these circumstances