Kansas HB 2537 'Caleb's Law' (AI sextortion)
Kansas HB 2537 (2026) — 'Caleb's Law': AI Images Added to Sexual Extortion (K.S.A. 21-5515)
Kansas · 2026 Kan. HB 2537 ('Caleb's Law'), amending K.S.A. 21-5515 (sexual extortion)
- Status
- In effect
- Took effect
- April 6, 2026
- Applies to
- Anyone who commits sexual extortion (criminal prohibition applying to the general public).
- Enforced by
- Kansas county/district attorneys and the Kansas Attorney General; Kansas courts.
Kansas's sexual-extortion statute now defines the covered 'image, video, or other recording' to include any depiction created, altered, or modified by artificial intelligence to appear to show a person, whether or not that person was part of any original recording. This means demands or threats backed by AI-fabricated sexual imagery fall within the crime of sexual extortion. The same act, known as 'Caleb's Law,' also raises penalties when an adult offender targets a victim under 18 or a dependent adult and creates aggravated sexual-extortion offenses.
Who is protected: Victims of sexual extortion, including those threatened with AI-generated sexual imagery; with heightened protection for minors and dependent adults.
Legal detail
HB 2537 amended K.S.A. 21-5515 so that 'image, video or other recording' includes any item 'created, in whole or in part, altered or modified by artificial intelligence or any digital means to appear to depict or purport to depict a person,' and added enhanced and aggravated sexual-extortion provisions.
Key facts
| Jurisdiction | Kansas |
|---|---|
| Level | State |
| Strength | Limited |
| Enacted | April 6, 2026 |
| Citation | 2026 Kan. HB 2537 ('Caleb's Law'), amending K.S.A. 21-5515 (sexual extortion) |
| Private right of action | No, agency enforcement only |
| Penalties | Existing sexual-extortion penalties apply to the AI-image expansion; the act separately increases penalties when an adult offender's victim is under 18 or a dependent adult and creates aggravated offenses for conduct causing great bodily harm or death. |
| Topics | non-consensual intimate imagery · AI-generated images |
| Bill text | Kansas Legislature — HB 2537 (As Amended), Bill Text (2025-2026 Session) |
More AI rules in Kansas
- KS Synthetic CSAM Law · In effect
- KS AI Foreign Platforms Ban · In effect
- Kansas HB 2479 (AI images in blackmail law) · In effect
- State of Kansas Generative Artificial Intelligence Policy (PPM 8200.00) · In effect
Related non-consensual intimate imagery rules elsewhere
- Arizona HB 2133 deepfake sexual content — vetoed 2026 · Vetoed
- Illinois HB 3851 — deepfake cyberbullying in schools (2026) · In effect
- TAKE IT DOWN Act · In effect
- DEFIANCE Act (deepfake-porn civil suits) · Proposed / pending
- NY S5959-D (2020, digital replicas + deepfake porn) · In effect
- Missouri Deepfake & Digital Media Protection Act · Proposed / pending
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