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Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s DEFIANCE Act of 2025 would create a federal civil route for victims of nonconsensual intimate digital forgeries, including sexually explicit deepfake images. The Senate passed the measure on January 13, 2026, but Congress.gov’s House listing still shows H.R. 3562 as introduced and referred to the House Judiciary Committee. The sources available do not show House passage or enactment, so the proposed right to sue is not yet an established federal remedy under this bill.
What the DEFIANCE Act would do
The bill’s full name is the Disrupt Explicit Forged Images and Non-Consensual Edits Act, or DEFIANCE Act of 2025. Sponsored in the House by Ocasio-Cortez, H.R. 3562 addresses nonconsensual intimate digital forgeries, a category that includes sexually explicit deepfake imagery. It proposes a civil remedy: a person targeted by covered imagery could seek relief through a lawsuit if the bill became law.
In her May 21, 2025 announcement, Ocasio-Cortez said, “We are reintroducing the DEFIANCE Act to grant survivors and victims of nonconsensual deepfake pornography the legal right to pursue justice.” That statement describes the bill’s aim, not a right already created by federal law.
Where the bill stands
The House and Senate actions are different, and neither source establishes enactment. Congress.gov lists H.R. 3562 as introduced on May 21, 2025 and referred to the House Judiciary Committee; its surfaced status is “Introduced.” Separately, the Senate Judiciary Committee reported that the Senate passed the DEFIANCE Act on January 13, 2026. The reviewed sources do not show that the House passed H.R. 3562 or that the bill became law.
- Congress.gov’s H.R. 3562 listing identifies the House bill and its reported status.
- The Senate Judiciary Committee release reports Senate passage on January 13, 2026.
Can women sue people who make deepfake porn of them under this bill?
Not on the basis of this bill alone at present. The DEFIANCE Act proposes a federal civil claim for victims of covered nonconsensual intimate digital forgeries, but the available status information does not establish that it has become law. The headline’s reference to women reflects the people targeted by the issue; the proposal is described more broadly in terms of victims and survivors.
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The sources summarized here do not provide enough detail to reliably state who could be sued, what exceptions might apply, how long a victim would have to file, what damages or other relief could be awarded, or what privacy protections litigation would include. Those specifics should be checked against the bill text rather than inferred from the announcement.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.What the sponsors said about the scale of the problem
In a June 12, 2024 release introducing an earlier version of the DEFIANCE Act, Ocasio-Cortez’s office stated that “96% of deepfake videos circulating online are nonconsensual pornography.” Treat that as a statistic attributed to the 2024 sponsor release, not as a current independently verified estimate.
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