California Civil Action for Sexually Explicit Digital Depictions (AB 602)
California · Cal. Civ. Code § 1708.86 (AB 602, 2019); Cal. Penal Code § 647(j)(4)
Californians depicted in sexually explicit deepfakes made or shared without their consent can sue the people responsible for damages, including statutory damages and attorney's fees. Criminal liability also exists under separate provisions (SB 926, 2024).
Technical detail
Cal. Civ. Code § 1708.86 creates a private right of action against persons who create or intentionally disclose sexually explicit material the person knows or should know was unconsented digitization; Penal Code § 647(j)(4) as amended by SB 926 (2024) criminalizes AI-generated intimate imagery distribution.
Who is protected: Individuals depicted in nonconsensual sexually explicit digitized/deepfake material
Who must comply: Creators and intentional disclosers of such material
Key facts
| Jurisdiction | California |
|---|---|
| Level | State |
| Status | In effect |
| Protection strength | Limited protection |
| Effective date | 2020-01-01 |
| Enacted | 2019-10-03 |
| Citation | Cal. Civ. Code § 1708.86 (AB 602, 2019); Cal. Penal Code § 647(j)(4) |
| Enforced by | Courts (civil actions); district attorneys (criminal provisions) |
| Private right of action | Yes — individuals can sue |
| Penalties | Economic/noneconomic damages or statutory damages ($1,500–$30,000; up to $150,000 for malice), punitive damages, attorney's fees; criminal misdemeanor penalties under Penal Code |
| Topics | non-consensual intimate imagery · deepfakes · AI-generated images · consumer data privacy |
| Last verified | 2026-06-10 |
| Official source | Cal. Civ. Code § 1708.86 (California Legislative Information) ↗ |
More AI rules in California
- CA EO N-6-26 (AI Workforce) · In effect
- California AB 489 (AI healthcare chatbot misrepresentation ban) · In effect
- X.AI v. Bonta (AB 2013 training-data disclosure) · Blocked / in litigation
- CA SB 1298 (2012 AV authorization) · In effect
- CA AB 856 (2015 drone trespass) · In effect
- California Bot Disclosure Act (bots must self-identify in sales/election messaging) · In effect
Related non-consensual intimate imagery rules elsewhere
- Arizona HB 2133 deepfake sexual content — vetoed 2026 · Vetoed
- TAKE IT DOWN Act · In effect
- DEFIANCE Act (deepfake-porn civil suits) · Proposed / pending
- NY S5959-D (2020, digital replicas + deepfake porn) · In effect
- VA HB 2678 (2019, first deepfake-NCII criminal law) · In effect
- Missouri Deepfake & Digital Media Protection Act · Proposed / pending
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