Two Men Charged Under New Trump Law Targeting AI ‘Deepfakes’

Federal Prosecutors Charge Two Men in First Major Cases Under New Federal Deepfake Pornography Law

BROOKLYN, N.Y. — Federal authorities have arrested and indicted two men accused of using artificial intelligence to create and distribute non-consensual deepfake pornography featuring celebrities, politicians, and private individuals, marking some of the earliest prosecutions under the Take It Down Act, a bipartisan law signed last year aimed at combating the surge in AI-generated sexual abuse material.

Cornelius Shannon, 51, of New Jersey, and Arturo Hernandez, 20, of Texas, were arrested Tuesday on charges related to the production and online dissemination of explicit AI-generated images and videos. The two men operated independently and are not believed to be connected, according to court documents.