The proposed legislation, General Assembly Raised Bill No. 483, aims to establish the crime of digital forgery, which is defined as the act of creating and disseminating a digitally forged likeness—such as a visual representation or audio recording—intended to cause financial harm to another individual. A digitally forged likeness is characterized as any image or audio that is not entirely recorded by traditional means, is generated by a computer system, closely resembles a real person's likeness, and is created without the consent of the individual depicted. The bill specifies that dissemination includes various forms of distribution, and it exempts law enforcement officers from liability when acting in their official capacity.

Under the new law, digital forgery is classified as a class A misdemeanor, escalating to a class E felony if part of a larger scheme. The bill also includes provisions for an affirmative defense if the defendant can demonstrate they took reasonable steps to inform viewers or listeners that the content was digitally forged. Additionally, it protects providers of interactive computer services from liability for content created or disseminated by others, as long as they were unaware of any violations. The act is set to take effect on October 1, 2026.