In our digital world an individual’s identity has become more vulnerable as well as highly valuable. Ever since the Cambridge Analytica scandal, many people have limited posting audio, video, and photographs of themselves online in case they are misused by others because, as a friend put it recently, ‘regardless of what we’re told, you can’t be entirely sure who or what will use your posts for their own purpose’. On the other hand, of course, putting podcasts, images, and videos of themselves online is part of their daily life for many people. If you work as an actor, a television presenter, an online influencer, or you are a leader in politics, government, or business, then your face, voice, and image are especially vulnerable to being used to create fake content for nefarious purposes (e.g. see here). Accordingly, there’s no surprise in reading recently that ~80 performers have written to the UK government demanding greater protection against their voices being used by AI. It isn’t, however, just performers that need this greater protection, it’s actually everyone.
Regardless of who you are, something posted online which includes your voice, face, and body image can be manipulated and monetised without you knowing or giving your permission. AI makes it straightforward to create realistic, fake, digital clones of you from audio clips, videos, and images posted online. Your identity could thus be misused, taken away from your control, and your digital clone could be used in scams and other criminality. Surely, therefore, your legal ownership of your voice, face, and body image is embodied as a single right in UK law? Well, no this isn’t the case. Instead, UK law provides a mix of protections for the individual under privacy, intellectual property rights, and a number of other laws. There’s no dedicated legal framework for individuals to control the use of their voice, face, or body image, which makes it challenging and hugely expensive to protect against unauthorised exploitation.
This feels to the Badger like another illustration that the law always hugely lags rapidly advancing digital technology enabling companies to play fast and loose for their own commercial gain. Denmark is apparently one of the first countries in the world to create copyright-style protection for individuals over their face, voice, and other personal distinguishing features. Will the UK introduce something similar? There’s no sign of that, which means it’s worth remembering that it’s been sensible in the digital world for years to think very carefully before posting images, audio, and video of yourself online. ‘Think before you post’ is even more sensible in the era of AI. After all, your face, voice, and personal characteristics are unique to you through birth and biology. They are at the heart of your identity as a human and it can never be right that anyone or anything can use your identity without your explicit permission.
