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Home/Regulation Tracker/California AB 602 — private right of action for sexually explicit deepfakes

California AB 602 — private right of action for sexually explicit deepfakes

California's 2019 civil remedy for sexual deepfakes, reinforced in 2024 with criminal offences for AI-generated child sexual abuse material and non-consensual sexual deepfakes.

californiadeepfakesnciiprivate right of action

At a glance

Acronym: AB 602
Country or region: United States
US state: California
Extraterritorial reach: Yes
Current status: Amended
Legally binding: Legally binding
Official text: Read the official text

All details 16

Instrument: State law
Applies to: Industry: Consumer apps and social media
Applies to: Type of AI: Synthetic media and deepfake generation, Image generation, Video generation, Voice cloning and speech synthesis
Who must comply: Individuals and the public, AI developers and providers
Proposed: 14 Feb 2019
Effective: 1 Jan 2020
Enforced by: Private right of action in California courts; district attorneys for the 2024 criminal offences
Penalty type: Civil liability, Criminal liability
Penalties: Statutory damages of $1,500 to $30,000 per violation (up to $150,000 for malice), punitive damages and attorney's fees; misdemeanour penalties under the 2024 laws.

Required actions

Depicted individuals may sue anyone who creates or knowingly distributes sexually explicit material showing them without consent, including AI-generated material

Sources

leginfo.legislature.ca.govhttps://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billNavClient.xhtml?bill_id=201920200AB602

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California AB 602 — private right of action for sexually explicit deepfakes

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