Washington, D.C.– The Sexual Violence Prevention Association (SVPA), in coalition with the Rape Abuse & Incest National Network (RAINN) and the National Center on Sexual Exploitation (NCOSE), brought 18 advocates and victims of digital sexual violence to the Capitol for a Survivor Advocacy Day, urging the House to pass the Disrupt Explicit Forged Images And Non-Consensual Edits (DEFIANCE) Act.
The DEFIANCE Act, authored by the SVPA in collaboration with Congress members and survivors, addresses artificially-generated non-consensual explicit materials (NCEM), commonly known as deepfake pornography. The bill passed the Senate unanimously in January and now awaits action in the House.
Survivors and advocates met with more than 15 congressional offices to share their stories and discuss how the DEFIANCE Act will address gaps in existing legislation, allowing them to seek justice.
Currently, there are no federal laws allowing victims to hold perpetrators of deepfake pornography accountable. There are also no federal laws covering the creation or non-public sharing of these materials.
The DEFIANCE Act will empower survivors with a civil right of action to sue perpetrators who created, distributed, published, solicited, or threatened to share deepfake pornography.
The significant need for this legislation has led to broad bipartisan support. The DEFIANCE Act is led by Rep. Laurel Lee [R-FL-15] and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez [D-NY-14] with 64 cosponsors– 32 republicans and 32 democrats.
Recently, OpenAI endorsed the DEFIANCE Act joining Microsoft, Snapchat, and other big tech companies. Over 95 organizations and companies endorse the bill including the Center for Democracy and Technology (CDT), the National Organization for Women (NOW), and Archewell Philanthropies.
Paris Hilton has also endorsed the bill, joining Reps. Lee and Ocasio-Cortez at the Capitol and speaking about it with Jimmy Fallon on The Tonight Show.
Once passed, the DEFIANCE Act will give victims of nonconsensual explicit deepfakes a path to sue perpetrators, seek damages, and obtain court-ordered removal of harmful content.
“I greatly appreciate the many survivors and advocates who joined us at the Capitol today. Survivors from across the county have dedicated countless hours sharing their stories and urging lawmakers to do the right thing. We shouldn’t have to share our stories over and over again. House leadership must stop stalling survivors’ justice.
We greatly appreciate the brave survivors who have shared their stories and the legislators who have championed this bill. To the other legislators, I say, it is not too late to join us. It is not too late to stand with survivors. It is not too late to protect women and children. Pass the DEFIANCE Act now!”
~ Omny Miranda Martone, Founder and CEO of the SVPA and a survivor of digital sexual violence.
