Deepfake Crimes and AI-Generated Sexual Exploitation in India: Need for Legal Reform

Rapid advances in AI have given rise to a troubling new dimension of gender-based violence: the non-consensual creation of sexually explicit deepfake imagery. Freely available generative AI tools allow perpetrators to produce realistic fake sexual content featuring real individuals without their consent, with women being disproportionately victimized. This paper examines whether India’s existing legal framework, the Information Technology Act, 2000 ; the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023; and the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012 is equipped to address this harm, concluding that it is not. Through doctrinal legal analysis and a comparative study of legislative approaches in the United Kingdom, United States, South Korea, and the European Union, the paper identifies critical gaps: the absence of a consent-centered criminal provision, obscenity laws ill-suited to AI-generated material, inadequate accountability mechanisms for online platforms, and minimal procedural safeguards for those harmed. Drawing on prominent Indian cases and emerging international frameworks, the paper proposes a comprehensive reform agenda that includes a new consent-based criminal offense, accessible civil legal remedies, proactive obligations for digital platforms, and strengthened institutional capacity for enforcement.