Deepfake Law in Australia
Australia criminalized sharing non-consensual sexual deepfakes federally in 2024. The eSafety Commissioner has takedown authority, and privacy reform remains a live but separate track.
- Status
- enacted
- Jurisdiction
- Australia
- Effective
- Sep 2024
- Statute
- Criminal Code Amendment (Deepfake Sexual Material) Act 2024
Australia passed federal criminal legislation against non-consensual sexual deepfakes in 2024, adding to an already-active eSafety Commissioner takedown regime under the Online Safety Act 2021.
Key provisions
Criminal Code Amendment (Deepfake Sexual Material) Act 2024. Criminalized transmission or sharing of non-consensual sexual deepfake material of a person aged 18 or over. Penalties up to six years imprisonment, or seven years for aggravated cases including repeat offenses. Child-sexual-abuse-material offenses already covered AI-generated content; the 2024 Act specifically addressed adult non-consensual cases.
Online Safety Act 2021. The eSafety Commissioner has world-leading takedown authority — can order content removed by platforms within specified timeframes, with financial penalties for non-compliance. Deepfake sexual material is within scope.
Privacy Act reform. Privacy reform remains a separate policy track that could expand biometric-data protections and clarify application to synthetic content depicting identified persons. As of July 2026, the enacted deepfake-specific baseline is still the Criminal Code amendment plus Online Safety Act takedown powers.
Existing fraud statutes. Commonwealth and state fraud laws apply to deepfake-enabled CEO fraud and identity impersonation.
eSafety enforcement
The eSafety Commissioner is internationally recognized for effective platform enforcement:
- Takedown notices with 24-hour compliance windows.
- Financial penalties on non-compliant platforms.
- Coordination with international counterparts (Ofcom UK, FTC US, DPAs in Europe).
The 2024 Criminal Code amendment gave eSafety additional authority specifically around deepfake sexual content.
Practical implications
For organizations operating in Australia:
- Platforms: eSafety takedown obligations are strict; compliance infrastructure must include rapid-response capability.
- Creators of deepfake content: criminal exposure for non-consensual sexual material is serious; prosecutions have begun.
- Enterprises: moderate compliance burden; eSafety regime is predictable but strict.