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HB 803 expands Maryland’s revenge porn law to cover not only real intimate images, but also certain computer-generated visual representations that are indistinguishable from an actual identifiable person. The bill defines “computer-generated visual representation” to include images created without using existing images of a person, as well as images created using existing images without the person’s consent. It also defines when a depiction is “indistinguishable” from a real person and excludes drawings, cartoons, sculptures, and paintings from that definition.
Under the bill, a person may not knowingly distribute either a real or computer-generated intimate image of another identifiable person when the image shows intimate parts or sexual activity and is shared with intent to harm, harass, intimidate, threaten, or coerce, and either without consent or with reckless disregard for consent. The bill preserves existing exceptions for law enforcement, reporting unlawful conduct, legal proceedings, voluntary public or commercial exposure, and immunity for interactive computer services under federal law. It also keeps the offense as a misdemeanor punishable by up to two years in prison, a fine of up to $5,000, or both, and extends court-record confidentiality protections to computer-generated victim images.
The bill’s main legal impact is to amend Criminal Law § 3-809 to address deepfake-style sexual imagery and other AI-generated or digitally altered intimate depictions, bringing them within Maryland’s nonconsensual pornography framework. It would broaden the statute’s reach to victims whose likeness is used in synthetic images that appear real, while also adding related privacy protections for court records in prosecutions under the section. The effective date is October 1, 2025.
Because no committee transcript or vote history is provided, there is no recorded floor or committee sentiment in the materials beyond the bill’s introduction and hearing assignment. Based on the text alone, the bill appears aimed at strengthening protections against digital sexual abuse and modernizing the revenge porn statute for AI-generated content. The main point of potential contention is likely the scope of the new definition of computer-generated imagery and how broadly “indistinguishable” from a real person may be applied, though the bill narrows that definition by excluding artistic media such as drawings and cartoons.
HB 803 would amend Maryland Criminal Law § 3-809 to expressly prohibit the nonconsensual distribution of certain computer-generated intimate images that are indistinguishable from an actual identifiable person, in addition to existing prohibitions on real intimate images. It would also extend confidentiality rules for court records in revenge porn prosecutions to include computer-generated victim images, while preserving existing exceptions and federal platform immunity provisions. The bill would create a misdemeanor offense punishable by up to two years’ imprisonment, a fine of up to $5,000, or both.
No vote totals or committee testimony are provided, so there is no documented legislative sentiment in the record beyond the bill’s introduction and hearing assignment. The bill’s text suggests a generally protective, victim-centered purpose focused on addressing deepfake and AI-generated sexual imagery. The absence of recorded opposition or support in the supplied materials means any broader sentiment can only be inferred from the bill’s anti-harassment and privacy-protection framing.
The likely area of contention is the bill’s treatment of computer-generated imagery, especially how to determine whether an image is “indistinguishable from another actual and identifiable person” and whether the statute could reach new forms of synthetic media. Another possible issue is balancing victim protection with free-expression concerns, though the bill attempts to limit that concern by excluding drawings, cartoons, sculptures, and paintings and by preserving exceptions for law enforcement, legal proceedings, and public exposure. No specific objections or supporters are identified in the provided materials.