Deepfakes And The Law: Analysing The Legal Vacuum And Theneed For Regulatory Reform In India
- IJLLR Journal
- Mar 8
- 1 min read
Manas Pratim Talukdar, BA LLB (Hons.), NERIM Law College
ABSTRACT
The rapid advancement of artificial intelligence has given rise to a deeply concerning technological phenomenon deepfakes. Deepfakes are hyper- realistic synthetic media, typically video or audio, generated by machine learning systems that superimpose a person's likeness upon another body or fabricate statements attributed to real individuals. While the technology carries legitimate applications in entertainment and education, its misuse poses grave threats to individual dignity, privacy, democratic integrity, and national security. India, as one of the world's largest digital economies, faces acute vulnerability to deepfake abuse, yet its legal framework remains inadequate to address this challenge. This essay examines the nature and harms of deepfakes; critically analyses existing Indian legal provisions under the Information Technology Act 2000, the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita 2023, and the Digital Personal Data Protection Act 2023; identifies significant lacunae therein; develops a conceptual argument grounding deepfake harm within the doctrine of "representational autonomy" under Article 21; applies the constitutional proportionality test to the proposed regulatory response; draws critically evaluated lessons from the United States, United Kingdom, and European Union; and ultimately advocates for a dedicated, comprehensive Deepfake Regulation Act for India, stress-tested against enforcement feasibility.
Keywords: Deepfakes, Artificial Intelligence, Cyber Law, Representational Autonomy, IT Act, Privacy, Regulatory Reform, India.
