Federal law gives deepfake victims a right to sue and recover damages

What it does

The DEFIANCE Act creates a federal civil right of action allowing individuals to sue anyone who creates, possesses with intent to disclose, discloses, or solicits non-consensual intimate digital forgeries (deepfake sexual images). Victims can recover liquidated damages of $150,000–$250,000 (higher if the conduct relates to sexual assault, stalking, or harassment), actual damages, attorney fees, and injunctive relief to remove the content. The law applies to conduct affecting interstate commerce and includes a 10-year statute of limitations.

Why we flagged it

The bill's operative mechanism is a civil cause of action enabling victims of non-consensual intimate digital forgeries to recover damages and obtain injunctive relief. It is protective legislation addressing a documented harm (image-based sexual abuse), not a regulatory carve-out, subsidy, or commemorative measure.

What the text implies

• The definition of 'intimate digital forgery' requires that the forgery be 'indistinguishable from an authentic visual depiction when viewed as a whole by a reasonable person'—this may create litigation over borderline cases and could exclude crude or obviously fake deepfakes, potentially narrowing the law's reach.
• The law applies only to conduct 'in or affecting interstate or foreign commerce'—purely intrastate creation and distribution may fall outside federal jurisdiction, leaving gaps in coverage depending on state law.

The full analysis lists 5 implications of this text.

Who it affects

The bill creates enforceable legal remedies for a serious form of image-based sexual abuse that causes documented psychological and social harm to victims. It shifts power from perpetrators (who currently face few consequences) to victims by enabling civil recovery, content removal, and deterrence through liquidated damages.