Senate Bill S3990A

                                 
BILL NUMBER: S3990A

SPONSOR: PARKER
 
TITLE OF BILL:

An act to amend the penal law and the civil rights law, in relation to
establishing the offense of false pretense

 
PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL:

This bill establishes the crime of false pretense for knowingly and
without consent impersonating another person through an internet
website, digital platform, artificial intelligence technology, deepfake,
synthetic media, or other electronic means for the purposes of harming,
intimidating, threatening, or defrauding such other person.  The bill
modernizes New York's criminal law to address emerging technologies
capable of digitally simulating a person's identity, voice, likeness,
image, or other identifying characteristics without consent. Addi-
tionally, the bill establishes civil remedies for victims of harmful
digital impersonation.

 
SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS:
              

Section 1: Short title. This act shall be known and may be cited as "The
Barakett Digital Safety Act."

Section 2: The penal law is amended by adding a new section 190.22 to
establish the offense of false pretense.  The bill provides that a
person is guilty of false pretense when such person knowingly and with-
out consent impersonates another person through or on an internet
website, digital platform, artificial intelligence technology, deepfake,
synthetic media, or other electronic means for the purpose of harming,
intimidating, threatening, or defrauding such person.

The bill further defines "impersonates" to include the use of artificial
intelligence systems, generative models, deepfake technology, synthetic
audio or video, or automated digital systems capable of simulating or
reproducing another person's likeness, voice, image, or identity without
consent.

The bill establishes a tiered penalty structure whereby false pretense
shall constitute a Class A misdemeanor, but shall be elevated to a Class
D felony where the conduct results in significant financial harm,
includes credible threats of physical harm, extortion, coercion, or
where artificial intelligence or synthetic technologies are used to
perpetrate fraud or substantial harm.

Section 3: The penal law is amended by adding a new section 190.23
establishing civil remedies for victims of false pretense.  The bill
authorizes courts to award damages, restitution, injunctive relief, and
removal of harmful impersonation content from digital platforms. The
bill additionally authorizes civil penalties of up to fifty thousand
dollars for harmful impersonation utilizing artificial intelligence,
deepfake technology, synthetic media, or related digital impersonation
technologies.

Section 4: This act shall take effect on the first of November next
succeeding the date on which it shall have become a law.

 
JUSTIFICATION:

As technology continues to evolve, so too do the methods by which bad
actors exploit, harass, intimidate, threaten, and defraud others.
Online predators, cyberbullies, stalkers, scammers, and malicious actors
increasingly use internet platforms, social media, artificial intelli-
gence technologies, and digitally manipulated content to impersonate
individuals and inflict reputational, emotional, professional, and
financial harm.

Recent advances in artificial intelligence and generative technologies
have made it possible to create realistic deepfakes, synthetic voice
recordings, altered videos, fabricated images, and other digital reprod-
uctions capable of convincingly imitating a person's identity without
their knowledge or consent. These technologies can be weaponized to
spread false information, facilitate fraud, extort victims, damage
careers and reputations, impersonate loved ones, interfere with employ-
ment, or create credible threats to public safety.

Current law has not sufficiently kept pace with these rapidly developing
technologies. While existing statutes address certain forms of fraud,
harassment, or identity theft, there remains a gap in addressing
digitally simulated impersonation intended to cause harm through online
platforms and artificial intelligence systems.

This legislation modernizes New York's criminal code by establishing the
offense of false pretense and expressly recognizing artificial intelli-
gence-enabled impersonation, deepfake technologies, and synthetic media
as covered conduct. The bill adopts a balanced, tiered approach to
penalties by distinguishing less severe offenses from those involving
serious financial harm, credible threats, coercion, extortion, or
significant misuse of advanced technologies.  Further, the bill provides
meaningful remedies to victims by authorizing courts to order damages,
restitution, removal of harmful content, and injunctive relief to stop
continued dissemination of fraudulent impersonation materials.

In an era of twenty-four-hour connectivity and rapidly evolving artifi-
cial intelligence technologies, this legislation is necessary to protect
New Yorkers from emerging forms of digital exploitation and identity-
based harm while ensuring accountability for those who weaponize tech-
nology to deceive, intimidate, threaten, or defraud others.

 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

2023-24: S5769- Referred to Codes

2021-22: S4789 - Referred to Codes

2019-20: S.4505/A685 Referred to Codes

2017-18: S.2848/ A4970

REFERRED TO CODES

2015-16: S.5871-A/A9843 - Referred to Codes

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:

None.

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect on the first of November next succeeding the
date on which it shall have become a law.