What is the ‘Take It Down’ Act and How Will It Control the Spread of Deepfake Images on Social Media?

Teghan O’Connell

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In her first official solo appearance of her second term as First Lady of the United States, Melania Trump spoke at a roundtable with members of Congress in support of the “Take It Down” Act. The act targets deepfake pornography and images, with a goal of protecting the victim. This act goes with the First Lady’s “Be Best” initiative, which has a similar goal of protecting children. [1]

The Take It Down Act was introduced this past June and backed by Ted Cruz (R-TX) and passed the Senate in December of 2024. The bill addresses the issue with deepfake imagery (or non-consensual intimate images) and how it affects both celebrities and everyday people. [2] The point of the act is to set a timeline for when social media platforms must remove deepfake pornographic material. The Take It Down Act sets a 48-hour time limit for social media platforms to remove the material after the content has been reported by the victim. [3] Failure to reasonably comply with these standards will result in a punishment set forth by the Federal Trade Committee.

Though there are punishments in place for those who publish “revenge porn,” up until now there have been no laws in place punishing those who post deepfake pornography. The Take It Down Act sets punishments for this crime at a fine or up to 2-3 years in prison (depending on whether the victim is a minor). Threats of publication of non-consensual intimate imagery would be punished the same way as the actual action under this bill. [4] In addition to removing the original images, social media sites must also make a reasonable effort to remove all copies of the images. [5]

Opposition to the Take It Down Act cites concerns over freedom of expression, claiming that the short time between reporting and removal does not give platforms enough time to thoroughly investigate the claims. The Electronic Frontier Foundation is concerned about the broad scope of content which can be removed under this provision. The lobbying group feels that the bill will allow for the unfair censorship of journalistic and comedic content if others take advantage of the short investigation time necessary for compliance. [6]

References

[1] Tanya Noury, Melania Trump urges Congress to act on deepfake porn, News Nation (Mar. 3, 2025, 6:12 PM), https://www.newsnationnow.com/business/tech/ai/melania-trump-deepfake-porn-take-it-down/

[2] Swapna Venugopal Ramaswamy, Melania Trump says consequences of non-consensual sexual images are ‘heartbreaking’, USA Today (Mar. 3, 2025, 12:46 PM), https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2025/03/03/melania-trump-nonconsensual-sexually-exploitative-images/81155356007/

[3] Text - S.4569 - 118th Congress (2023-2024): TAKE IT DOWN Act, S.4569, 118th Cong. (2024), https://www.congress.gov/bill/118th-congress/senate-bill/4569/text/es.

[4] Text - S.4569 - 118th Congress (2023-2024): TAKE IT DOWN Act, S.4569, 118th Cong. (2024), https://www.congress.gov/bill/118th-congress/senate-bill/4569/text/es.

[5] Marley Malenfant, What is the ‘Take It Down’ Act? Texas bill seeks to ban deepfake revenge porn online, Austin American-Statesman (Jun. 25, 2024, 10:08 AM), https://www.statesman.com/story/news/state/2024/06/25/take-it-down-act-ted-cruz-texas-bill-deepfakes-ai-revenge-porn/74197016007/

[6] India McKinney, The Senate Passed The TAKE IT DOWN Act, Threatening Free Expression and Due Process, EFF (Feb. 25, 2025), https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2025/02/senate-passed-take-it-down-act-threatening-free-expression-and-due-process