Editor’s Note: All opinion section content reflects the views of the individual author only and does not represent a stance taken by The Collegian or its editorial board.

You’re on the phone and you receive a text. It’s a photo of you. You don’t remember taking this picture, but it’s of your face on a naked body, and it’s being sent back to you. You’re not sure who made it, and you’re not quite sure how to delete it from the internet. But it’s there now, maybe forever, and you never even took a photo.

The rise of generative artificial intelligence has created a harsh new reality: AI deepfake pornography that can be created and distributed without consent. It can follow a victim endlessly, especially when the internet has a terrifyingly long lifespan for abuse — even longer than a human life. AI deepfakes are an emerging form of weaponized action, one we truly cannot protect ourselves from. And while artificial intelligence is criticized for many reasons, it’s important to address how it is leading a new era of misogyny.

Deepfakes are often discussed in a political sense; people worry about the possibility of a politician being falsely recorded saying something they didn’t. Of course, deepfakes cause endless issues. Reputations can be ruined with false narratives, but they also provide plausible deniability for something a person might’ve genuinely said or done.

But the majority of circulating deepfake photos and videos harm the average person on a much more intimate, physical level. Ninety-six percent of deepfakes shared are “nonconsensual sexual deepfakes,” and 99% of those feature women. Most aren’t being used to mess up a politician’s reputation — they’re being used to destroy the livelihoods of, oftentimes very young, victims.

Earlier this year, a trend quietly began on X. Users directed Elon Musk’s AI tool, Grok, to digitally alter photos of fully-clothed women to show them in only a bikini. These photos or videos were then posted, completely publicly, on X. This trend exploded, and by Jan. 8, according to The Guardian, Grok was receiving as many as 6,000 demands for bikini videos per hour.

But AI deepfakes are not just pornographic and misogynistic. In many cases, they are also extremely violent. According to The Guardian, some users requested Grok add splashed blood, splattered organs, exposed scars and bruises or forced smiles onto the women.

Society has been conditioned to believe women’s bodies are always accessible. And if they aren’t? Just make an AI version of them to fuck and brutalize.

AI deepfakes are a whole new, mainstream territory for victims to navigate online — victims who’ve become increasingly younger. A deepfake video of a teenager or child could be created and shared within seconds. This content should be considered child sexual abuse material, and possession of it should result in appropriate consequences.

This is a form of sexual harassment and assault. AI deepfakes can quite literally live forever on the internet, following victims to their deaths, outlasting their legacies and haunting their reputation even postmortem.

While there are many pieces of legislation arising that address deepfakes, there is no single federal law in the U.S. criminalizing deepfake porn. However, a few pieces of legislation have been introduced and passed in the U.S. Senate, one of which gives victims of deepfake porn the right to sue those who created and shared the content.

Many states criminalize the sharing of deepfakes but few laws address the creation of these videos in the first place. Recently, a California law was passed that will require AI companies to disclose when content is AI-generated. This could be a step against the creation of abusive deepfakes, but it still does not criminalize the creation of such content.

Minnesota signed a law in May banning “nudification technology” but were hit with a lawsuit by Elon Musk soon after. The lawsuit is still ongoing, so the law remains in effect at the moment.

Victims can only do so much, but the more pressure placed on platforms to act, the more likely we are to see change. Deepfakes reveal a serious issue with privacy and consent in the modern age, and with enough awareness, legislation will be forced to catch up.

AI can simplify our daily lives. AI systems can reduce time-consuming tasks and help us better prepare for natural disasters. AI can assist in improving agricultural and automated processes. But if AI access grants a future where people can lose all their autonomy and dignity at the press of a button, the benefits pale in comparison to the violence and harm that can be created.