The internet is full of deepfakes, most of which are nude.
According to a report by Home Security Heroes, deepfake porn makes up 98% of all deepfake videos online. Thanks to easy-to-use and freely available generative AI tools, the number of deepfakes online, many of which are non-consensual, has skyrocketed 550% from 2019 to 2023.
Laws against non-consensual deepfakes have been slow to emerge, at least in the United States, but a new tool in Google Search is making it a little easier to remove them.
Google recently introduced changes to search to combat deepfake pornography, including tweaks to its search ranking algorithm designed to reduce deepfake content in search results. The company also introduced faster ways to process requests to remove non-consensual deepfake pornography results from search.
Here's how to use it:
Removal Request
The easiest way to request that deepfake non-consensual pornography search results (webpages, images, or videos) be removed from Google Search is to use this webform. Please note that there is a separate form for child sexual abuse imagery, and the content must meet our removal criteria:
Nude, intimate or sexually explicit material (such as an image or video of you) is distributed without your permission, or you are falsely depicted as nude or in a sexually explicit situation, or falsely associates you or your name with sex work.
Click on the option “Content contains nudity or sexual material” and proceed to the next page.
Image credit: Google
At this stage, select “Content falsely depicts me in sexual or intimate acts. (This is sometimes known as a 'deepfake' or 'fake porn').”
Image credit: Google
On the final page of the form, after you enter your name, country of residence, and a contact email address, you'll need to indicate whether you or another person is depicted in the deepfake content you want to remove. Google allows other people to remove content on someone's behalf, but only if they're an “authorized representative” and can explain why they have the authority to do so.
Image credit: Google
Next comes the content information section, where you'll need to enter the URLs of the deepfake search results you want to remove (up to 1,000 results), the URLs of the Google search results where the content appears (also up to 1,000 results), and the search terms that return deepfakes. Finally, you'll need to upload one or more screenshots of the content you're reporting, as well as any additional information that helps explain the situation.
What to do after you submit your request
Once you submit your request, you'll receive an automated confirmation email. Your request will be reviewed and Google may then request additional information (such as additional URLs). You'll be notified of any action taken. If your request didn't meet our removal requirements, you'll receive a follow-up message explaining why.
Denied requests can be resubmitted with new supporting documentation.
Google said that if someone successfully requests to remove non-consensual deepfake pornography from search results, its systems will aim to filter explicit results in all similar searches related to that person. Additionally, if an image is removed from search under Google's policies, Google said its systems will scan for duplicates of that image and remove any that are found.
“These protections have already proven effective in addressing other types of non-consensual imagery, and we've built similar capabilities for fake explicit imagery,” Google said in a blog post. “These efforts are intended to provide additional reassurance to people, especially those who are concerned about seeing similar content about them in the future.”