Melania Trump-backed revenge porn bill passes House, heads to president's desk

(TNND) — A bill is headed to President Donald Trump's desk that criminalizes the publication of nonconsensual sexual imagery, including artificial intelligence-generated "deepfake revenge pornography," and requires websites to remove the content within 48 hours of notification from a victim.

First lady Melania Trump championed the bill, the “Take It Down Act.”

The House passed the bill by an overwhelming margin, 409-2, on Monday evening. Already passed by the Senate a few months ago, all the bill needs now to become law is the president’s signature.

“The passage of the TAKE IT DOWN Act is a historic win in the fight to protect victims of revenge porn and deepfake abuse,” Sen. Ted Cruz, a Texas Republican and one of the bill’s sponsors, said in a news release.

The bill enjoyed bipartisan support in both chambers.

“We must provide victims of online abuse with the legal protections they need when intimate images are shared without their consent, especially now that deepfakes are creating horrifying new opportunities for abuse,” said Sen. Amy Klobuchar, a Minnesota Democrat and co-sponsor.

The first lady joined lawmakers and victims at a roundtable event last month.

One of those victims, Elliston Berry, said she was just 14 when a boy at her school used AI to create deepfake images of her.

“I knew I could never go back and undo what he did, but I wanted to do anything to help prevent this from happening to others,” Berry said in the news release after the House passage. “With the passage of the TAKE IT DOWN Act, we can protect future generations from having to experience the pain I went through. The outpouring of support for this bill has been amazing to see, and I've been truly inspired by how so many of America's leaders and major tech organizations have come together to promote this important cause. I am grateful to Sen. Cruz and Sen. Klobuchar for listening to my story and to First Lady Melania Trump for helping bring even more attention to our efforts to turn this horrible situation into something good.”

More than 120 organizations representing victim advocacy groups, law enforcement, and the tech industry supported the bill, according to lawmakers.