The Oregon House of Representatives voted 56-0 on Tuesday to expand the state’s existing “revenge porn” legislation to include artificially generated or digitally manipulated explicit content. House Bill 2299, which would criminalize the creation and distribution of AI-generated nude or sexually explicit images without consent, now advances to the Senate for consideration.

If enacted, Oregon would join 31 other states that have already implemented similar legal protections against deepfake technology misuse. The bipartisan legislation, co-authored by Representative Kevin Mannix (R-Salem) and Representative Annessa Hartman (D-Gladstone), specifically targets realistic digital impersonations rather than obviously fictional depictions.

“We’re addressing images that purport to represent actual individuals,” explained Rep. Mannix during floor debate. “These aren’t cartoons or clearly fictional representations – they’re designed to falsely depict real people in explicit situations.”

Rep. Hartman illustrated the potential harm through a scenario where a student’s yearbook photo could be transformed using readily available AI tools into explicit content that rapidly spreads online, potentially causing irreparable reputation damage before victims can effectively respond. The legislation represents a critical update to privacy laws as artificial intelligence capabilities continue advancing.