Are Deepfakes Illegal? Understanding the Legal Risks in 2025

In only a few years, technology to create deepfakes has shifted from fun to worrying. Developed initially because of experiments with creative technology, deepfakes are now raising serious questions about privacy, security, misinformation and their legality.

As time moves towards 2025, it is getting hard to tell the real from the fake. Therefore, is it against the law to use deepfakes? It depends on the purpose, location and those who are involved. The purpose of this article is to explore the progress in deepfake laws and show you the risks involved.

What Are Deepfakes

Generative Adversarial Networks (GANs) are used along with deep learning technology to make people believe that the media is real. They can be used to replace a face on an actor’s body, change how a person’s voice sounds or change their movements and expressions to seem like something else was said or done.

Impersonating celebrities and making up political statements are just two of the many ways AI is being used. It is acceptable for AI to be used for some things like art, but it is also used to commit fraud, harass and spread false information.

Is it against the law to use Deepfakes?

There is not one law that applies to all countries and says “deepfakes are forbidden.” It is the intent of creating deepfakes, the material they include and the location where they are made that matters for their legality. Here’s how:

1. Deliberate and Bad Intent

Most often, deepfakes are thought of as illegal when they are used for these purposes:

Making false videos to damage someone’s reputation may lead to a civil suit.

Non-consensual pornography is a topic gaining attention in the courts, as it centres on using someone’s face to create pornography without permission. It is officially illegal in countries such as the U.K., the U.S. and South Korea.

If a deepfake of a CEO or government official is used to scam others, it can result in charges for fraud or identity theft.

If a person gives a fake political statement or supports a political candidate in a way that misleads the public, it could be considered election interference and may be prosecuted.

2. Jurisdiction Matters

How deepfakes are regulated depends on the country.

The United States does not have a strict ban on deepfakes, but laws related to defamation, identity theft and using someone’s image without permission are applied when necessary. California and Texas are two states that have created new laws to prevent malicious deepfakes from being used in politics and pornography.

The EU’s Digital Services Act and AI Act were made to address the problem of harmful AI-generated content such as deepfakes. If someone’s photo is used without permission under the GDPR, the privacy of that person could be violated.

In China, strict regulations for deepfakes are in place. All synthetic content should now be clearly marked and any platform distributing deepfakes should verify that the content is not deceitful.

India: Currently, a deepfake regulation framework is being prepared under the Digital India Act, with the aim of addressing consent, transparency and what platforms are responsible for.

Legal Grey Areas and Challenges

Even though the answer to “Are deepfakes illegal” is simply no. Yet, still, it is difficult to enforce laws related to deepfakes.

For deepfake research, it can be difficult to trace the source or prove someone’s intention.

If a deepfake created in one nation spreads worldwide, it becomes a huge challenge to regulate it.

Sometimes, satire or parody can help defend deepfakes when issues of freedom of expression are involved.

Risky Industries

Some fields are more susceptible to being affected by deepfakes:

Finance: Deepfake voice scams aimed at banks and other companies have actually resulted in losses for these organizations.

During elections, deepfakes often lead the public to doubt the truth, causing confusion.

Media and Entertainment: Using celebrities’ images or recordings without permission may break IP laws.

Audio deepfake phishing: Executives are being fooled by imitation voices and pressured to transfer money fraudulently.

Ways to Ensure Safety

For Individuals:

• Avoid sharing any private pictures or audio recordings on the internet.
• Check the authenticity of dubious information using the tools available online.
• Notify the necessary authorities or online platforms if someone is using deepfake.

For Organizations:

• Ensure workers are aware of deepfake risks in finance and communications.
• Adopt technology that can identify and verify AI-generated content.
• Come up with policies to address situations where synthetic media causes damage to the brand’s reputation.

In the Near Future: Regulation After 2025

If deepfake technology develops, we need to update the rules that govern it as well. In 2025, 

attention will be paid by multiple nations to:

• Rules for making synthetic media transparent.
• Lawmaking that requires people to consent to the use of their biometric data.
• An obligation on social media and hosting companies to handle the sharing of harmful deepfakes.

Similarly, major technology businesses are using watermarks, detection applications and community rules to reduce the number of deepfakes.

Conclusion

Then, what is the law on deepfakes? Not inherently. However, if they are used for illegal reasons, they can break civil and criminal laws. Because technology is blending real and unreal information, lawmakers are trying to catch up as well.

Whatever your role, knowing about the legal matters concerning deepfakes in 2025 is very important. Being updated, practicing prevention and demanding better rules are our most effective precautions against the era when nothing we see is true.