PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — Legislation in Harrisburg would require school districts to immediately notify law enforcement if any students make AI-generated deepfake nude or inappropriate images of classmates. It comes after several school districts delayed reporting, as they didn’t know how to handle it.
The bill would require mandated reporters, like teachers or coaches, to immediately report suspected deepfake child sexual abuse material to Pennsylvania’s childline and to school officials.
Prime Sponsor, Lancaster County Democrat Nikki Rivera, said action was needed after it happened at Lancaster Country Day School.
“We had the unfortunate victimization of almost 50 students at one school because of AI deepfakes and putting people's faces on bodies and sending them out and humiliating people,” Rivera said, adding that the delay in reporting led to other students being victimized.
Bucks County Republican State Rep. Kristin Marcell is a co-sponsor of the bill and said she saw firsthand the need for immediate reporting when 11 girls in the Council Rock district were victimized by classmates using AI.
She said a delay in notifying law enforcement also made the criminal investigation that much more challenging.
In multiple cases, parents whose children have been victimized by deepfakes said school officials told them they were unsure if a law had been broken. Marcell and Rivera said this bill removes any ambiguity.
The bill advanced out of the House Judiciary Committee with a unanimous vote and heads to the full House for consideration.
