Ban AI impersonation of real individuals without their consent

digital-rights disinformation law ethics policy privacy ai-governance regulations ai-regulation deepfakes

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Key insights

Many supportive quotes focus on sexual or intimate deepfakes, while others apply the same consent principle to scams, commercial deception, and false professional impersonation.
Across governments, companies, and advocacy groups, explicit consent is often described as the baseline rule for cloning a voice or depicting an identifiable person.
A substantial share of supportive quotes pairs restrictions with removal duties, complaints systems, enforcement powers, or private rights of action, showing a focus on remedies as well as prohibition.
Several supporters also stress that protections should leave room for responsible innovation, legitimate use, and speech safeguards, which narrows the practical gap with the opposing concern about overbreadth.
The opposing quotes do not defend deceptive abuse; they warn that bans framed categorically around deepfakes may reach protected expressive uses that do not depend on consent.

Arguments for

Identity and consent control

Supporters say a person's voice, face, image, likeness, and digital replica should remain under that person's control. They argue AI use of those attributes without explicit permission treats identity as something that can be stolen or exploited, so everyone should have enforceable rights over how AI can use it.

No one's name, image, likeness, voice, or creative work should be used by any third party, including AI models, without clear, documented consent.

Creative Artists Agency (CAA) · Jul 10, 2026 · full quote
Your identity is your IP in the age of AI, and every person deserves the right to decide how AI can or cannot use it.

Cate Blanchett · Jun 23, 2026 · full quote
Today's unanimous vote in the Senate Judiciary Committee is a major step forward for Americans who deserve to know that their image, voice, and likeness cannot be stolen or used without their permission. AI is moving fast, and that is exciting. But no one should have to worry tha…

María Elvira Salazar · Jun 22, 2026 · full quote
You may use AI voice features only with: Your own voice; or A voice for which you have explicit, documented permission from the voice owner, granted for the specific use you intend.

Voice Outreach · May 23, 2026 · full quote
When we were drafting this bill, its applicability to pillars of the creative community like Ms. McBride, Martina McBride, or to a movie star like Tom Hanks, its applicability to people who make a living off of their voice or likeness was clear. But Senator Blackburn and I agreed…

Christopher A. Coons · 2025 · full quote

Protection from intimate abuse

Supporters describe non-consensual sexual or intimate deepfakes, including nudification tools, as humiliating, abusive, and a violation of privacy and human dignity. They argue bans, rapid removal duties, and victim recourse are needed to protect women, children, and other targets from enduring harm.

We have fast tracked work to bring into force legislation making illegal for anyone to create or request deepfake intimate images of adults without consent, which will become law tomorrow.

Government of the United Kingdom · Feb 5, 2026 · full quote
The new law adds a new provision in the AI act, prohibiting AI practices regarding the generation of non-consensual sexual and intimate content or child sexual abuse material (CSAM).

Council of the European Union · Jun 29, 2026 · full quote
Taking down CFAKE.com halted the publication of non-consensual, sexually explicit digital forgeries that harmed the women they depicted. We were honored to be part of this coordinated international operation and to help halt this ongoing abuse. The Criminal Division stands ready …

A. Tysen Duva · Jun 12, 2026 · full quote
The Duty to Make Certain Content Inaccessible will require the rapid removal of content that sexually victimizes a child or revictimizes a survivor; or intimate content communicated without consent, including deepfake sexual images.

Canadian Heritage · Jun 10, 2026 · full quote
This bipartisan legislation gives survivors the ability to hold perpetrators accountable and sends a clear message that exploiting someone’s likeness without consent will have consequences.

Laurel Lee · Jun 24, 2026 · full quote
In their position, the MEPs want to introduce a new ban on so-called “nudifier” systems that use AI to create or manipulate images that are sexually explicit or intimate and resemble an identifiable real person without that person’s consent.

European Parliament · Mar 18, 2026 · full quote

Fraud and deception prevention

Many quotes present AI impersonation as a tool for scams, fraud, and dangerous deception, from fake calls by loved ones or officials to false medical endorsements. In this view, consent-based prohibitions and stronger enforcement are necessary to preserve public trust and protect consumers, patients, seniors, and small businesses.

The American Medical Association urges Congress to act quickly to establish strong safeguards against AI-generated impersonations of physicians. This threat is no longer theoretical. Scammers and bad actors currently use deepfake technology to prey on patients, promote dangerous …

John Whyte, MD, MPH · May 19, 2026 · full quote
“Do not call” means do not call. Period. But illegitimate and intrusive robocalls are only getting worse, especially as scammers weaponize AI to impersonate loved ones and exploit Americans. So many of us are bombarded with relentless calls. Enough is enough. That’s why I am rein…

Jan Schakowsky · Apr 15, 2026 · full quote
The threat of AI generated scams and deepfake fraud call for urgent, bipartisan action. The AI Fraud Accountability Act provides legal tools to protect consumers and hold bad actors accountable. Thank you, Senators Sheehy and Blunt Rochester and Representatives Buchanan and Soto …

Brad Smith · Mar 4, 2026 · full quote
As artificial intelligence becomes more advanced, criminals are exploiting it to scam hardworking Americans. We are seeing a disturbing rise in AI-generated voice clones and deepfake videos that convincingly impersonate loved ones, business executives, government officials and tr…

Vern Buchanan · 2026 · full quote
With the rise of generative AI and high-quality deepfakes, impersonation has become a uniquely digital weapon of remarkable sophistication. A criminal can now wear a citizen’s face and speak with their voice to commit crimes or cause profound personal distress. This is no longer …

Lord Clement-Jones · Mar 4, 2026 · full quote

Creator and worker protections

Artists, performers, journalists, and other workers say unauthorized AI replicas let others profit from identities and creative reputations they spent years building. They argue clear legal protections can stop deceptive replacement and commercial imitation while supporting responsible AI development.

Film and television production remains an integral part of New York’s economy, and that is why New York will continue to lead in protecting the workers who power this industry. As this legislation goes into effect, New York’s performers will be better protected from their likenes…

Michael Gianaris · Jun 9, 2026 · full quote
Artists, illustrators, and designers in every district are watching their livelihoods be undercut by AI tools deliberately impersonating them, but right now, the law has no answer for it. These are people who have spent a lifetime building their creative identity – they deserve p…

Beth Van Duyne · Jun 3, 2026 · full quote
NAB applauds Senators Blackburn and Coons for reintroducing the NO FAKES Act, which takes an important step toward protecting trusted broadcast journalists, local radio hosts and other on-air personalities from the unauthorized use of their voice, image or likeness. Broadcasters …

Curtis LeGeyt · May 20, 2026 · full quote
The upcoming vote marks a significant opportunity to establish clear, balanced intellectual property protections for the age of artificial intelligence. As AI tools become more powerful and widely available, it is vital to protect creators, politicians, performers, and other indi…

Frank Cullen · Jun 16, 2026 · full quote
I applaud Senators Blackburn and Coons and Representatives Salazar and Dean for their commitment and leadership in addressing the urgent need to establish guardrails to prevent unauthorized, AI-generated deep fakes. As a bridge between the tech and creative industries, the NO FAK…

Robert Kyncl · May 20, 2026 · full quote
Seeing AI systems replicate the work and likeness of creators without consent is terrifying, especially for independent artists whose creativity is directly tied to their livelihood. The CREATOR Act is an important step toward giving creators legal protection and accountability w…

Alexsey Reyes · Jun 3, 2026 · full quote

Arguments against

Risk to protected expression

Opponents argue that a broad or categorical ban on deepfakes could chill or prohibit legitimate uses of synthetic media in public discourse and storytelling. They emphasize that some technology-assisted depictions are fully protected expression and do not require the consent of the people depicted, so any rule must be drafted with care.

A handful of bills introduced this year seek to categorically ban “deepfakes.” In other words, these bills would make it unlawful to create or share AI-generated content depicting someone saying or doing something that the person did not in reality say or do. [...] These exampl…

John Coleman · Feb 13, 2025 · full quote
It will take very careful drafting to accomplish the bill's goals without inadvertently chilling or even prohibiting legitimate, constitutionally protected uses of technology to enhance storytelling. I want to emphasize, this is technology that has entirely legitimate uses, uses …

Ben Sheffner · 2024 · full quote

Middle ground

Narrow ban with safeguards

Some supportive quotes explicitly call for rules aimed at abusive, deceptive, or unauthorized digital replicas rather than a blanket rejection of AI-generated media. They argue protections should be paired with free-expression safeguards, room for legitimate use and storytelling, and clear accountability standards that still allow responsible innovation.

Disney continues to support the NO FAKES Act to provide protection against misuse of an individual’s image and voice while preserving critical speech safeguards for legitimate storytelling.

Disney · May 21, 2026 · full quote
The American Bar Association commends Senators Coons and Blackburn for their continued bipartisan leadership toward developing a broad consensus around the NO FAKES Act. This is important, balanced legislation to guarantee the rights of artists, creators, and everyday people agai…

Michelle Behnke · May 20, 2026 · full quote
The rapid growth of AI-generated media makes it imperative to pair innovation with clear, practical safeguards. The updated NO FAKES Act reflects meaningful progress by aligning with how platforms actually operate, strengthening protections against unauthorized digital replicas, …

Kevin Guo · May 20, 2026 · full quote
The Motion Picture Association continues to back the NO FAKES Act and thanks Senators Coons and Blackburn for their unwavering commitment to ensuring this bill becomes law. NO FAKES importantly establishes federal protections against abusive and deceptive uses of digital replicas…

Charles H. Rivkin · May 20, 2026 · full quote
Artificial intelligence will help unleash innovation, opportunity, and prosperity in the 21st century economy, but we must ensure it is not a tool for fraud. The AI Fraud Accountability Act modernizes federal law to crack down on AI fraudsters targeting American families, seniors…

Tim Sheehy · Mar 4, 2026 · full quote
The Grammy organization applauds the reintroduction of the NO FAKES Act. This carefully crafted legislation strikes the right balance in protecting artists from the spread of harmful deepfakes online, while also acknowledging advancements in AI technology are a part of our future…

Harvey Mason Jr. · May 20, 2026 · full quote

Much of the supplied discussion treats non-consensual AI impersonation as a present problem linked to intimate abuse, fraud, and loss of control over personal identity. The main point of contention is not whether these harms exist, but how narrowly a ban should be written so it targets deceptive and exploitative conduct without sweeping in legitimate expressive or storytelling uses of AI.

Cast your vote:

Results (163 votes):

Total (163 votes)

For 160 (98%) Abstain 0 (0%) Against 3 (2%)

For (160)

Government of Australia
Government of Australia speaking through its delegate at the UN Global Dialogue on Artificial Intelligence Governance in July 2026.

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votes For and says:

These workstreams build on existing Government actions including already legislated criminal offences to ban the sharing of non-consensual deepfake sexually explicit material, and work to ban nudify apps.
AI Verified source (Jul 20, 2026)

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Delegate
Kathy Hochul
Governor of New York

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votes For and says:

AI Deceptive Practices Act, which enhances protections against unauthorized use of likeness/voice and the unauthorized dissemination of intimate images.
AI Verified source (Jul 14, 2026)

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Delegate
J.B. Branch
AI Governance and Technology Policy Counsel at Public Citizen.

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votes For and says:

People should not wake up to discover their face has become raw material for someone else's AI experiment.
AI Verified source (Jul 10, 2026)

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Creative Artists Agency (CAA)

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votes For and says:

No one's name, image, likeness, voice, or creative work should be used by any third party, including AI models, without clear, documented consent.
AI Verified source (Jul 10, 2026)

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Peter Tsiamalili Jr.
Papua New Guinea’s Acting Minister for Information and Communications Technology in 2026.

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votes For and says:

No Papua New Guinean should have their face, voice or identity stolen and weaponized for profit, humiliation, fraud, sexual exploitation, intimidation or deception.
AI Verified source (Jul 7, 2026)

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Sam Gregory
Executive Director, WITNESS

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votes For and says:

Standards like the C2PA specification must be built with privacy, and human rights at their center so they cannot become surveillance infrastructure. Alongside that, we need detection capabilities for deceptive AI that work globally.
AI Verified source (Jul 7, 2026)

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Óscar López Agueda
Spanish Minister for Digital Transformation and Civil Service.

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votes For and says:

We have moved towards a prohibition of sexual deepfakes, deepfakes in child pornography within the legislation.
AI Verified source (Jul 7, 2026)

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Rita Orji
Professor of Computer Science and Canada Research Chair in Persuasive Technology at Dalhousie University.

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votes For and says:

AI can now be engineered to persuade and manipulate humans at scale using mechanisms that are fundamentally different from any communication technology we've seen in the past.
AI Verified source (Jul 6, 2026)

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Marilena Raouna
Deputy Minister for European Affairs of the Republic of Cyprus.

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votes For and says:

By banning AI-generated or manipulated sexual deepfakes and AI-generated child sexual abuse material, we are sending a clear message that technological progress must always go hand in hand with the protection of our fundamental values.
AI Verified source (Jun 29, 2026) 1 of 2

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Council of the European Union
EU Council of governments

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votes For and says:

The new law adds a new provision in the AI act, prohibiting AI practices regarding the generation of non-consensual sexual and intimate content or child sexual abuse material (CSAM).
AI Verified source (Jun 29, 2026)

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Parliament of Australia
Federal legislature of Australia, comprising the Senate and House of Representatives.

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votes For and says:

Amends the Online Safety Act 2021 to establish a complaints and enforcement regime for the non-consensual sharing of digitally altered or artificially generated audio or visual content that depicts a person’s face or voice without their consent.
AI Verified source (Jun 25, 2026)

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Laurel Lee
U.S. Representative for Florida's 15th congressional district; co-sponsor of the DEFIANCE Act.

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votes For and says:

This bipartisan legislation gives survivors the ability to hold perpetrators accountable and sends a clear message that exploiting someone’s likeness without consent will have consequences.
AI Verified source (Jun 24, 2026)

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Cate Blanchett

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votes For and says:

Your identity is your IP in the age of AI, and every person deserves the right to decide how AI can or cannot use it.
AI Verified source (Jun 23, 2026)

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Oversight Board
Independent body that reviews certain Meta content-moderation decisions and issues policy recommendations.

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votes For and says:

The Board finds that AI-generated impersonation is non-consensual by default and should be added to the set of signals the company uses to establish lack of consent.
AI Verified source (Jun 23, 2026)

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Gobind Singh Deo
Malaysian Minister of Digital, speaking on the proposed Artificial Intelligence Governance Bill.

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votes For and says:

This approach allows threats such as deepfakes and synthetic content to be controlled from the start through data governance, transparency, risk assessment and clear accountability for developers and those who deploy AI systems.
AI Verified source (Jun 22, 2026)

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María Elvira Salazar
U.S. representative from Florida

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votes For and says:

Today's unanimous vote in the Senate Judiciary Committee is a major step forward for Americans who deserve to know that their image, voice, and likeness cannot be stolen or used without their permission. AI is moving fast, and that is exciting. But n...
more AI Verified source (Jun 22, 2026)

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Ashley Moody
U.S. senator from Florida

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votes For and says:

No one should have their voice, image, or likeness stolen and used in a fake video or AI-generated deepfake without their consent.
AI Verified source (Jun 18, 2026)

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Council for Innovation Promotion
Bipartisan coalition promoting intellectual property rights and innovation policy.

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votes For and says:

The NO FAKES Act advances both of those goals. By protecting individuals from the unauthorized use of their voices, images, and likenesses, the bill helps ensure that Americans retain meaningful control over their identities and creative contribution...
more AI Verified source (Jun 16, 2026)

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Frank Cullen
Executive Director of the Council for Innovation Promotion.

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votes For and says:

The upcoming vote marks a significant opportunity to establish clear, balanced intellectual property protections for the age of artificial intelligence. As AI tools become more powerful and widely available, it is vital to protect creators, politicia...
more AI Verified source (Jun 16, 2026)

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Markwayne Mullin
U.S. Senator from Oklahoma and co-lead of the Protecting American Consumers from Robocalls Act.

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votes For and says:

These groundbreaking seizures are a massive win against deepfake pornography. The TAKE IT DOWN Act was a priority for First Lady Melania Trump to stop the abuse and exploitation of women and children. This is the first of many wins to stop these deep...
more AI Verified source (Jun 12, 2026)

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Todd Blanche
Acting Attorney General of the United States.

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votes For and says:

These domain seizures mark a significant victory in the fight against deepfake pornography. The TAKE IT DOWN Act, championed by First Lady Melania Trump, gives us the tools we need to combat the abuse and exploitation of women and children through th...
more AI Verified source (Jun 12, 2026)

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Robert Frazer
U.S. Attorney for the District of New Jersey.

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votes For and says:

These seizures stopped a website that trafficked in humiliation, exploitation, and the violation of personal privacy on a massive scale. For the victims whose images were distributed without their consent, the harm is not virtual — it is deeply perso...
more AI Verified source (Jun 12, 2026)

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A. Tysen Duva
Assistant Attorney General for the U.S. Department of Justice Criminal Division.

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votes For and says:

Taking down CFAKE.com halted the publication of non-consensual, sexually explicit digital forgeries that harmed the women they depicted. We were honored to be part of this coordinated international operation and to help halt this ongoing abuse. The C...
more AI Verified source (Jun 12, 2026)

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Canadian Heritage
Government of Canada department responsible for cultural policy and the official publisher of Canadian Heritage news releases.

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votes For and says:

The Duty to Make Certain Content Inaccessible will require the rapid removal of content that sexually victimizes a child or revictimizes a survivor; or intimate content communicated without consent, including deepfake sexual images.
AI Verified source (Jun 10, 2026)

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Michael Gianaris
New York State Senator representing Queens and sponsor of synthetic-performer protections.

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votes For and says:

Film and television production remains an integral part of New York’s economy, and that is why New York will continue to lead in protecting the workers who power this industry. As this legislation goes into effect, New York’s performers will be bette...
more AI Verified source (Jun 9, 2026)

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Whitney Wolfe Herd
Founder and CEO of Bumble.

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votes For and says:

We support the bipartisan CONSENT Act, which empowers individuals to take legal action against those who knowingly send nonconsensual explicit content.
AI Verified source (Jun 4, 2026)

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Brian Schatz
U.S. Senator (D–Hawaii)

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votes For and says:

By providing a federal private right of action and imposing penalties, this bill will help prevent sexual harassment and hold perpetrators accountable.
AI Verified source (Jun 4, 2026)

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Rachel Sheeran
Advocacy Co-Chair at the Graphic Artists Guild, representing visual artists on AI and intellectual-property policy.

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votes For and says:

Artists deserve meaningful protections against the unauthorized use and exploitation of their distinctive styles, and they should have clear avenues for recourse when bad actors misuse generative AI systems to imitate or profit from their work withou...
more AI Verified source (Jun 3, 2026)

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Andrew Scrivani
Photographer, author, and multimedia artist advocating legal protections against AI imitation of visual artists.

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votes For and says:

AI can now mimic a photographer’s visual identity with alarming precision, and the law has not kept pace. The CREATOR Act would give visual artists a layer of protection they’ve needed for a long time.
AI Verified source (Jun 3, 2026)

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Alexsey Reyes
Houston-based photographer and multimedia artist advocating protections against AI replication of creators' work and likeness.

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votes For and says:

Seeing AI systems replicate the work and likeness of creators without consent is terrifying, especially for independent artists whose creativity is directly tied to their livelihood. The CREATOR Act is an important step toward giving creators legal p...
more AI Verified source (Jun 3, 2026)

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