Navigating The No Fakes Act

The proposed No Fakes Act, introduced last week, aims to protect individuals' image, voice, and likeness from unauthorized digital replicas. This federal legislation addresses concerns over deepfake technology and seeks to create uniform protections across the U.S., as current state laws vary widely. It would establish these rights as intellectual property, granting exclusive control over digital replicas.

Key aspects of the bill include non-assignable rights, meaning individuals cannot permanently transfer these rights during their lifetime. The bill also outlines specific rules for licensing, such as a maximum duration of ten years for adults and five for minors. Notably, the legislation provides for post-mortem rights, allowing heirs to control the use of a deceased person's likeness for up to 70 years, provided there's active use.