Synthetic Media Disclosure Act

Summary

Requires any person advertising property or services in New York to disclose when synthetic media is used in advertisements, including when synthetic media depicts a natural person, without the person’s consent.

Establishes civil penalties and fines if the above is violated.

Amends New York law to require advertisements to disclose use of synthetic media.

AN ACT to amend the general business law, in relation to requiring advertisements to disclose the use of synthetic media

THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM- BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

Defines "synthetic media" as AI-generated human likeness indistinguishable from natural persons.

Section 1. Section 396-b of the general business law, as added by chapter 1031 of the laws of 1965, is amended to read as follows: § 396-b. Advertisements. 1. FOR PURPOSES OF THIS SECTION, "SYNTHETIC MEDIA" MEANS ANY HUMAN VOICE, PHOTOGRAPH, IMAGE, VIDEO OR OTHER HUMAN LIKENESS CREATED, REPRODUCED, OR MODIFIED BY COMPUTER, USING ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE OR SOFTWARE ALGORITHM, TO BE INDISTINGUISHABLE TO A REASON- ABLE VIEWER FROM A NATURAL PERSON.

Prohibits false statements in property advertisements; mandates disclosure of advertiser identity upon request.

2. Any person, firm, corporation or association, or agent or employee thereof, hereinafter called person, who, being engaged in the business of dealing in any property, makes, publishes, disseminates, circulates or places before the public or causes, directly or indirectly, to be made, published, disseminated, circulated or placed before the public, in this state, any advertisement respecting any such property, in any newspaper, magazine, or other publication, or over any radio station or television station, unless it is stated in any such advertisement that the advertiser is a dealer in such property or from the context of any such advertisement, it plainly appears that such person is a dealer in such property so offered for sale in any such advertisement; or when placing or causing any such advertisement to appear in any newspaper, magazine or other publication or radio or television station as described in this section, if requested by the publisher of any such newspaper, magazine or other publication or owner or operator of such radio or television station or any agent or representative thereof to file with such owner or operator, publisher, agent or representative thereof his true name, or where he is transacting business under a name other than the true name pursuant to law, then the name under which such business is transacted, and each business address wherein any business is transacted by him, in the class of property advertised or to be advertised for sale in such advertisement, shall make any false state- ment in relation to any of such items; or if requested by the publisher of any such newspaper, magazine or other publication or owner or operator of such radio or television station or any agent or representative thereof to file with such owner, operator, publisher, agent or represen- tative thereof a statement showing whether he is causing such advertise- ment to appear or is offering to make such sale or disposition or trans- action, as herein set forth, as principal or agent, and if as agent, to set forth such information as is specified in this section, in relation to his principal as well as in relation to himself, shall make any false statement in relation to any of such items; is guilty of a misdemeanor.

Requires disclosure if synthetic media used in advertisements. Imposes penalties for violations.

3. ANY PERSON ENGAGED IN THE BUSINESS OF DEALING IN ANY PROPERTY OR SERVICE WHO FOR ANY COMMERCIAL PURPOSE MAKES, PUBLISHES, DISSEMINATES, CIRCULATES OR PLACES BEFORE THE PUBLIC OR CAUSES, DIRECTLY OR INDIRECT- LY, TO BE MADE, PUBLISHED, DISSEMINATED, CIRCULATED OR PLACED BEFORE THE PUBLIC ANY ADVERTISEMENT RESPECTING ANY SUCH PROPERTY OR SERVICE, IN ANY MEDIUM OR MEDIA IN WHICH SUCH ADVERTISEMENT APPEARS, SHALL DISCLOSE IN SUCH ADVERTISEMENT IF SYNTHETIC MEDIA IS IN SUCH ADVERTISEMENT, WHERE SUCH PERSON KNOWS OR SHOULD HAVE KNOWN. (A) IF SYNTHETIC MEDIA HAS BEEN USED IN ANY COMMERCIAL ADVERTISEMENT UNDER THIS SECTION TO CREATE A LIKENESS THAT DEPICTS A NATURAL PERSON, WITHOUT THAT PERSON'S CONSENT, ENGAGED IN ANY ACTION OR EXPRESSION IN WHICH THE NATURAL PERSON DID NOT ACTUALLY ENGAGE, SUCH ADVERTISEMENT SHALL INCLUDE A DISCLAIMER WHICH CLEARLY AND CONSPICUOUSLY STATES THAT SUCH LIKENESS FEATURED IN SUCH ADVERTISEMENT IS SYNTHETIC, DOES NOT DEPICT A NATURAL PERSON, AND IS GENERATED TO CREATE A HUMAN LIKENESS. (B) IT SHALL NOT BE A DEFENSE TO AN ACTION UNDER THIS OR ANY OTHER LAW THAT THE DISCLAIMER REQUIRED UNDER PARAGRAPH (A) OF THIS SUBDIVISION HAS BEEN INCLUDED IF THE SYNTHETIC MEDIA DEPICTS A NATURAL PERSON WITHOUT SUCH NATURAL PERSON'S CONSENT. (C) A VIOLATION OF THIS SUBDIVISION SHALL RESULT IN A CIVIL PENALTY OF ONE THOUSAND DOLLARS FOR A FIRST VIOLATION, AND FIVE THOUSAND DOLLARS FOR ANY SUBSEQUENT VIOLATION.

Preserves existing rights and protections under other laws, including 47 U.S.C. Section 230.

4. NOTHING IN THIS SECTION SHALL LIMIT OR REDUCE ANY RIGHTS ANY PERSON MAY HAVE UNDER SECTION FIFTY, FIFTY-F, OR FIFTY-ONE OF THE CIVIL RIGHTS LAW OR UNDER ANY OTHER LAW.
5. NOTHING IN THIS SECTION SHALL BE CONSTRUED TO LIMIT, OR TO ENLARGE, THE PROTECTIONS THAT 47 U.S.C. SECTION 230 CONFERS ON AN INTERACTIVE COMPUTER SERVICE FOR CONTENT PROVIDED BY ANOTHER INFORMATION CONTENT PROVIDER, AS SUCH TERMS ARE DEFINED IN 47 U.S.C. SECTION 230.

Declares invalid provisions not to affect the remainder of the act.

§ 2. Severability clause. If any clause, sentence, paragraph, subdivi- sion, section or part of this act shall be adjudged by any court of competent jurisdiction to be invalid, such judgment shall not affect, impair, or invalidate the remainder thereof, but shall be confined in its operation to the clause, sentence, paragraph, subdivision, section or part thereof directly involved in the controversy in which such judg- ment shall have been rendered. It is hereby declared to be the intent of the legislature that this act would have been enacted even if such invalid provisions had not been included herein. § 3. This act shall take effect immediately.