YouTube may deem AI-generated content to be a privacy violation

With AI-generated content now proliferating the internet, companies are scrabbling to put polices in place to handle such material on their platforms. Among them is YouTube, and the Google-owned video site has updated its privacy guidelines to better take into account artificial intelligence.

It is now possible for anyone to issue a request to YouTube to remove content if it simulates their face or voice. This is separate to the way in which deepfakes are handled, and it is interesting to see such AI-generated content being seen as a potential violation of an individual's privacy.

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YouTube made the change to its privacy guidelines with no fanfare. Simply submitting a removal request is not enough to guarantee that content will indeed be removed. AI-generated content must meet existing YouTube criteria to qualify for consideration.

Specifically, YouTube says:

For content to be considered for removal, an individual must be uniquely identifiable and the complaint we received from that individual, or their legal representative, must uniquely identify the individual by a combination of image, voice, full name, government identification number, bank account number, contact information (e.g. home address, email address), or other uniquely identifiable information.

When it comes to AI-content, the update guidelines include advice about how to "Report AI-generated or other synthetic content that looks or sounds like you". YouTube explains:

If someone has used AI to alter or create synthetic content that looks or sounds like you, you can ask for it to be removed. In order to qualify for removal, the content should depict a realistic altered or synthetic version of your likeness. We will consider a variety of factors when evaluating the complaint, such as:

• Whether the content is altered or synthetic
• Whether the content is disclosed to viewers as altered or synthetic
• Whether the person can be uniquely identified
• Whether the content is realistic
• Whether the content contains parody, satire or other public interest value
• Whether the content features a public figure or well-known individual engaging in a sensitive behavior such as criminal activity, violence, or endorsing a product or political candidate

More information is available here.

Image credit: [email protected] / depositphotos