Worldwide there has been a rise in the proliferation of sexually explicit deepfakes. This is where images or videos are digitally altered or synthesised to take an individual’s recognisable likeness and turn it into sexually explicit material.

This form of material constitutes a clear violation of self-ownership and personal autonomy. Just as the unauthorised sharing of genuine intimate imagery is a rights infringement, so too is the false representation of a person in intimate contexts without consent. This conduct misappropriates a person’s image for exploitative purposes, causing reputational, psychological, and often material harm. Criminalising such acts and enabling victims to seek redress and removal aligns with a commitment to defending individuals from coercion, fraud, and aggression.

This Bill holds accountable those who use digital tools to violate other individuals’ agency. It does this by amending both the Crimes Act 1961 and the Harmful Digital Communications Act 2015 to expand the definition of an "intimate visual recording" to explicitly include images created, synthesised, or altered to show a person’s likeness produced without consent.

This Bill is an omnibus Bill introduced under Standing Order 267(a).