Federal prosecutors have charged two men under the 2025 Take It Down Act, accusing them of creating non-consensual AI-generated intimate imagery. The case marks one of the first criminal prosecutions under the law, which took effect earlier this year.
The Charges
The defendants, whose names were not released by the Department of Justice, face multiple counts each of producing and distributing computer-generated depictions of real people in sexually explicit situations without their permission. Investigators said the images were made using publicly available artificial intelligence tools and were shared on social media and messaging apps.
According to court documents, the men targeted at least a dozen victims, including former classmates and acquaintances. The victims were not identified in the filings. The case was opened after a joint investigation by the FBI and local police.
What the Take It Down Act Does
The Take It Down Act, signed into law in July 2025, makes it a federal crime to create or share realistic AI-generated intimate images of a person without their consent. It also requires social media platforms to remove such content within 48 hours of receiving a report. Violators face up to five years in prison for a first offense and up to 10 years for subsequent offenses.
The law was drafted in response to a surge in deepfake pornography and other synthetic media used to harass and humiliate individuals. Lawmakers from both parties supported the bill, which passed with broad margins.
The Growing Issue of AI-Generated Abuse
Non-consensual intimate imagery created by AI has become a growing problem. Advocacy groups say victims often struggle to get content taken down and face significant emotional harm. The charges in this case are a signal that federal authorities are now treating these acts as serious crimes rather than mere online pranks.
Prosecutors did not provide details on the specific tools the men used or how they obtained the underlying photographs of the victims. But investigators said the images were so realistic that some victims initially believed they were real photographs.
The case is pending in federal district court. A hearing is expected within weeks. The defendants remain free pending trial, though they were ordered to surrender their passports and refrain from using any AI image-generation software.
The Take It Down Act applies to all AI-generated intimate content, regardless of whether the original source material was obtained legally. That means even if the underlying photos were originally shared consensually, using them to create fake explicit images is a crime.
