- The Crisafulli Government has introduced new laws to criminalise the creation of non-consensual intimate images generated or altered using digital technology.
- The reforms prioritise victims’ rights to privacy, dignity and autonomy over the interests of offenders who create harmful and exploitative content.
- The new laws will help protect students, teachers and all Queenslanders from AI-generated content used to harass, abuse and cyber-bully.
- The Crisafulli Government is making Queensland safer after a decade of decline under the former Labor Government.
The Crisafulli Government has introduced legislation to Parliament to slam shut a loophole that has allowed predators to create ‘deepfake’ sexually explicit images of a person without their consent, as part of its commitment to make Queensland safer.
Highly accessible AI tools can now generate sexually explicit content, that can falsely depict real people without a person’s knowledge or consent, including in Queensland schools where harmful content has been used to cyber bully students and teachers.
To ensure Queensland laws keep pace with technology, the legislation creates a new offence criminalising the non-consensual creation of intimate images or intimate audio material through digital technology, closing a loophole that has allowed offenders to evade accountability.
The new offence will:
- Capture intimate images that are digitally altered or created entirely using digital technology, including through image-editing software, AI-generated images and “nudify” applications.
- Include images of simulated or digitally generated people that closely resemble, or purport to be, an identifiable real person, ensuring offenders cannot exploit technical loopholes.
- Apply to the non-consensual creation of both intimate images and intimate audio material.
- Carry a maximum penalty of three years’ imprisonment.
Attorney-General and Minister for Justice and Minister for Integrity Deb Frecklington said offenders had been exploiting a loophole in the law for too long, and the Crisafulli Government was taking action to close it.
“Behind every deepfake image is a real person whose privacy, dignity and sense of safety has been violated. This legislation is for those victims, and for every Queenslander who deserves to be protected from this insidious form of abuse,” the Attorney-General said.
“Our hardworking teachers and students are on the frontline of this emerging threat, which is why we are taking action to criminalise this harmful conduct.
“I am proud to introduce this legislation today to ensure victims are better protected and offenders can no longer exploit a loophole in the law to avoid accountability.”
The legislation has been informed by consultation with stakeholders across the sexual violence, domestic and family violence, victim support, online safety, legal, education and government sectors, with stakeholder feedback helping shape the final reforms.
