Denmark is poised to become the first European country to legally outlaw the unauthorized use of deepfakes, moving swiftly to amend its copyright law amid growing global concerns about the misuse of artificial intelligence to replicate human likeness without consent.
The proposed law, announced last month by the Danish Ministry of Culture, will guarantee every person in Denmark the right to their own face, body, and voice — a move widely viewed as an unprecedented legal safeguard against the evolving threat of generative AI. With support from nearly 90% of parliamentarians, the bill is expected to sail through when it is formally presented after the summer recess and adopted by autumn.
The bill defines a deepfake as a hyper-realistic, digitally generated imitation of a person’s appearance or voice. Once enacted, the law will allow Danes to demand that online platforms take down AI-generated content mimicking them without consent. It also expands protections to cover unauthorized recreations of artists’ performances — marking the first time a European government has sought to address the issue through legally enforceable rights over one’s digital likeness.
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Culture Minister Jakob Engel-Schmidt, who unveiled the proposal, said the legislation aims to address the “legal vacuum” that currently allows the unauthorized creation and dissemination of manipulated digital identities.
“We are sending an unequivocal message that everybody has the right to their own body, their own voice and their own facial features,” Engel-Schmidt told The Guardian. “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.”
The Deepfake Crisis and Rising Global Alarm
Denmark’s proposal comes as governments across the world grapple with the rising use of deepfakes for fraud, misinformation, blackmail, political manipulation, and non-consensual pornography. Enabled by generative AI, these videos and audio clips are becoming nearly indistinguishable from authentic content, making it easier than ever to fake a person’s actions or statements convincingly.
A recent Europol report warned that deepfakes are already being weaponized by cybercriminals and foreign adversaries, especially during election seasons. In the U.S., the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in 2024, banned the use of AI-generated voices in robocalls after an incident in which a fake voice impersonating President Joe Biden was used to suppress voter turnout in a primary election.
In the U.K., deepfakes have been used in financial scams involving voice cloning of CEOs to authorize large transfers. In Asia, several banks have already issued warnings to customers after discovering AI-generated video and voice scams targeting mobile banking users.
Yet, despite mounting evidence of the damage, most governments remain caught off guard. Regulatory frameworks are largely outdated or nonexistent, and enforcement mechanisms are struggling to catch up with the rapid advances in AI. In many countries, victims of deepfakes have little legal recourse — especially in cases where no explicit criminal action, like fraud or defamation, has occurred.
Denmark’s proposed reform aims to change that — at least within its borders. By giving people the right to control their digital identity, the law not only provides legal tools for removal and compensation but also puts pressure on tech platforms to act swiftly against non-consensual AI content.
The government has signaled that if platforms do not comply, it is ready to pursue stronger penalties, including “severe fines” and action at the European Commission level.
“Of course this is new ground we are breaking, and if the platforms are not complying with that, we are willing to take additional steps,” said Engel-Schmidt.
“That is why I believe the tech platforms will take this very seriously indeed,” he added.
The law will not ban satire or parody, which are protected forms of expression, but the government has made clear that platforms will be expected to distinguish between legitimate creative content and malicious impersonation.
Engel-Schmidt said Denmark will use its upcoming EU presidency to push for broader adoption of similar protections across the bloc. If successful, it could lay the groundwork for a Europe-wide standard on identity rights in the digital age.
While Denmark leads with this legislation, other countries are beginning to explore similar protections. China passed a rule in 2022 requiring synthetic content to carry clear labels, and the European Union’s AI Act — which is set to take effect soon — includes limited transparency rules for deepfakes. But many say these measures are not enough.
In the U.S., Congress has introduced several bills to regulate deepfakes, including the DEEPFAKES Accountability Act, but none have been passed. Meanwhile, public figures, including actors and musicians, are increasingly turning to private lawsuits to combat unauthorized AI usage.
The entertainment industry, in particular, has become a frontline in the deepfake debate. The recent strikes by Hollywood actors included demands for protections against studios using their faces or voices through AI without additional compensation.
Denmark’s bold move is seen as a model for a legal system trying to keep pace with a technology advancing faster than any in recent memory. As AI tools become widely accessible and more powerful, the threat of malicious deepfakes is no longer a distant possibility — it is an ongoing reality.