Denmark is making history—and drawing a hard line in the sand against tech companies and AI who are using you data, especially your photos, videos, and images, without your consent.
The country’s government is about to change copyright law to give people full rights over their own face, body, and voice. Basically, if an AI bot tries to clone someone without their consent, the company that made the AI bot is going to land up in a world of trouble.
Under the new rules, people will own the copyright to their own face, body and voice. This would then allow people who have been deepfaked without consent to send takedown notices to platforms that host such deepfakes and demand money for copyright infringement. Even the AI companies who make tools that are used to create deepfakes, are fair game.
Yup, your own face and voice are now your intellectual property. And if platforms don’t comply, you can sue.
The law applies to everyone, from celebs to regular users.
Denmark’s Culture Minister Jakob Engel-Schmidt said in a statement that it’s about time laws caught up with tech. He also said that people can’t just be digitally copied for memes, scams, or shady content, and that one’s identity should never be up for grabs.
Denmark’s copyright update is the first of its kind in Europe. France has laws that punish deepfake uploads with jail time and fines. The UK focuses on sexual deepfakes. The EU has rules for labelling AI content. But none of them go as far as giving you the legal right to own and protect your face and voice.
Denmark’s bill already has huge political backing and will enter public consultation before summer, with a full rollout expected by fall.
Engel-Schmidt says tech companies could face massive lawsuits or EU-level action if they ignore takedown requests. “Severe fines” are also on the table.
This isn’t just about Denmark—it’s setting the tone for the rest of Europe. Honestly, this should be a no-brainer law everywhere. India and every other country seriously need to wake up and roll out similar protections. Your face, your voice, your identity—it’s 2025, and they should be yours to own.
