A bill that would ban the creation of these images without consent was watered down by the government. This is where timidity gets you
At an away day last week, Keir Starmer told his cabinet that they must become “disruptors if you don’t want to be disrupted”. Yet timidity, caution and hesitation have damaged too many of Labour’s bold policies. Will Starmer’s new message percolate through to the cabinet – and to their junior ministers, civil servants and official lawyers? This week, one policy decision that went largely unnoticed suggests his party is still far from embracing disruption.
Tens of thousands of deepfake porn images are produced every week, many of celebrities, mostly of ordinary women. These obscene AI-generated images have the power to destroy lives, roaming the internet for ever. They can be sent to friends, family, children, school friends, present or future employers. Those who create these poisonous pictures often turn out to be close friends, or people seeking revenge. Nobody thinks this is OK. Indeed, sharing deepfake porn became a criminal offence in the 2023 Online Safety Act.
Polly Toynbee is a Guardian columnist
