The spread of deepfake pornographic images of pop star Taylor Swift has sparked outrage from Swifties and politicians alike, as X (formerly Twitter) works to remove the posts. Swift herself is reportedly considering legal action.
Deepfake Porn of Taylor Swift Sparks Outrage
According to The Guardian, deepfake porn of Swift was seen by millions on social media this week. One image, previously posted to Telegram, was reportedly seen 47 million times on X before it was finally removed.
X said in a statement, “Our teams are actively removing all identified images and taking appropriate actions against the accounts responsible for posting them.”
The Mary Sue reports that Swift’s fans also took action to distract from the AI-generated images by sharing positive posts about the singer. They used the hashtags #ProtectTaylorSwift and #TaylorSwiftAI, along with wholesome images and praise for the singer.
Swift has not spoken publicly about the issue as of this writing, but a source told the Daily Mail that the singer is “furious” over the spread of deepfake images using her likeness and is even considering legal action.
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Politicians Are Speaking Out About the Issue
Swifties aren’t the only ones speaking out about the deepfake images on social media. Some politicians have also shared their outrage over the situation, including congresswoman Yvette D. Clarke. The Democrat from New York wrote that this issue is “nothing new.”
“For yrs, women have been targets of deepfakes [without] their consent,” Clarke wrote on X. “And [with] advancements in AI, creating deepfakes is easier & cheaper. This is an issue both sides of the aisle & even Swifties should be able to come together to solve.”
Congressman Joseph Morelle, another Democrat from New York, called the spread of these images “appalling,” adding that it’s “sexual exploitation.” Morelle proposed the Preventing Deepfakes of Intimate Images Act last year. This would make sharing deepfake porn without consent illegal.
Across the aisle, Republican congressman Thomas Kean Jr. from New Jersey wrote that “AI technology is advancing faster than the necessary guardrails.” Kean has proposed the AI Labeling Act, which would require AI-generated content to be labeled as such.
