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President Donald Trump on Monday signed into law the Take It Down Act, landmark legislation that makes it a federal crime to post sexually explicit content online — whether real or AI-generated — without consent. The bill aims to combat the rise of deepfake harassment and ensure swift removal of such content from websites.
The bipartisan measure, passed 409-2 in the House and by unanimous consent in the Senate, criminalizes both the publication and threatened publication of intimate visual material. Offenders may face fines, imprisonment, and mandatory restitution to victims.
At a signing ceremony in the White House Rose Garden, Trump called the bill a necessary response to the dangers of AI-generated abuse.
“It’s very abusive… like, in some cases, people have never seen before. And today we’re making it totally illegal,” Trump said.
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) will be tasked with enforcement. Websites must comply with removal requests within 48 hours, and make good-faith efforts to take down duplicated content.
First Lady Melania Trump, a longtime advocate for online safety, was a driving force behind the bill.
“Artificial Intelligence and social media are the digital candy for the next generation… but unlike sugar, these new technologies can be weaponized,” she said. “Every young person deserves a safe online space.”
Co-sponsored by Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) and Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) in the Senate and led by Rep. Maria Elvira Salazar (R-FL) in the House, the bill reflects rare bipartisan unity on technology and privacy issues.
The law also standardizes the patchwork of state-level deepfake regulations, which previously varied in terms of classification and penalties.
President Trump previously referenced the bill in March, joking,
“I’m going to use that bill for myself, because nobody gets treated worse than I do online.”
Despite its broad support, the Take It Down Act is only the sixth bill Trump has signed into law during his second term. His legislative pace remains slower than past presidents, with only five bills signed by Day 100 — the fewest since Dwight Eisenhower, according to NBC News.
Experts and advocates have praised the law as a much-needed tool to protect women, minors, and public figures from digital sexual exploitation, especially as AI tools make explicit content easier to create and spread.
