Florida introduces new legislation designed to enhance safeguards for children against sexual predators, particularly as these offenders increasingly leverage technology to target young victims.
On Tuesday, Gov. Ron DeSantis enacted several bills aimed at increasing penalties and enhancing reporting obligations for sexual offenders, while also addressing the rising concerns surrounding artificial intelligence and online manipulation.
“Sexual predators will stop at nothing to be able to harm kids. Now, with these devices, these predators can get into your home. Kids play video games, and these guys can go in and entice them,” DeSantis said during the bill signing.
Among the recently enacted measures is Brooke’s Law, named in honor of Brooke Curry, a Jacksonville teenager whose experience garnered widespread attention to the problem of AI-generated explicit images.
Curry fell prey to deepfake technology, with digitally manipulated images that misleadingly depicted her in a compromising manner, circulating on social media two years prior. She faced challenges in her efforts to have the images taken down.
“We are here today because we chose not to look away. Because we decided silence was not an option. Because we know victims of this crime, many of them young, vulnerable and silent, deserve a voice, justice and a path forward,” Curry said.
Brooke’s Law mandates that websites must remove fake sexual images when requested by the victim. Furthermore, digital platforms are required to establish and visibly showcase a straightforward policy for the removal of deepfake content by year’s end.
“It’s about accountability, dignity and hope for every person who has been exploited or violated,” Curry said. “You have a voice, and now, thanks to this law, you have a path forward.”
“These are people that are manipulating this stuff, but they can do it so well that a lot of people think this is authentic,” DeSantis said.
A recent legislative change intensifies consequences for those who lure minors by broadening the age range of victims, eliminating certain defenses, and raising penalties.
Brooke’s Law is now in effect, while the legislation aimed at predators will be implemented in October.
