Denmark Is Taking On AI By Letting People Copyright Their Own Faces. In A World Of Deepfakes, It’s A Radical Step

Denmark is getting serious about deepfakes. The country plans to update its copyright laws to give people legal control over their own faces, voices and bodies.

The Danish government says this will make it easier for people to fight back against AI-generated imitations shared online without their permission. The changes are backed by a wide majority in Parliament and are expected to be introduced this fall.

“Everybody has the right to their own body, their own voice and their own facial features, which is apparently not how the current law is protecting people against generative AI,”  Denmark’s Culture Minister Jakob Engel-Schmidt told The Guardian last month.

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Deepfakes are realistic digital versions of people created with artificial intelligence. They can make it look like someone said or did something they never did. With AI tools getting more powerful and accessible, it’s easier than ever to make convincing fake images, videos or audio.

According to The Guardian, the law would give Danes the right to ask platforms to take down any deepfake content made or posted without their consent. It would also protect artists from having their performances digitally copied without permission. Those affected could be entitled to compensation.

Parodies and satire would still be allowed, but anything that digitally imitates someone without consent for more serious or harmful use would no longer be legal.

“Human beings can be run through the digital copy machine and be misused for all sorts of purposes, and I’m not willing to accept that,” Engel-Schmidt told The Guardian.

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The minister also warned tech companies that if they don’t follow the new law, they could face “severe fines.” If necessary, Denmark may escalate enforcement to the European Commission.

Engel-Schmidt said he hopes other European countries follow Denmark’s example. Now that Denmark has taken over the EU presidency, he plans to push this idea further across the continent.

While Denmark pushes for legal protections, the U.S. has taken a more contradictory path. U.S. officials have repeatedly warned that deepfakes threaten national security, democracy and trust in public institutions. Just last year, three U.S. agencies issued a joint statement calling deepfakes a “top risk.”