AI-Generated Robocalls Banned After Troubling Deepfakes

The Federal Communications Commission on Thursday outlawed artificial intelligence-generated robocalls in response to an uptick in so-called deepfakes intended to sound like political candidates, including thousands of calls ahead of the New Hampshire primary last month using a vocal clone of President Joe Biden.

The FCC unanimously adopted a ruling that robocalls that employ AI-generated voices are considered “artificial” voices under the federal Telephone Consumer Protection Act, effectively making the use of those voices illegal.

Those deepfakes “are already sowing confusion by tricking consumers into thinking scams and frauds are legitimate,” FCC chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel said in a statement last month, adding that Americans “could all be a target of these faked calls.”