Denmark’s Bold Move to Protect Digital Identity

Denmark has just made history by becoming the first European country to grant its people copyright protection over their own likeness – their face, body, and voice. In a digital driven world, where deepfakes are becoming alarmingly convincing, this new legislation gives individuals more control by providing the right to demand takedowns and seek compensation if their image is used without consent. In short, you own the rights to your own face.

Deepfakes: From Funny to Frightening

The law comes as a reaction to the increased use of deepfakes – AI-generated videos impersonating individuals using their publicly available personal data. While some might be good for a cheap laugh (light-hearted AI adaptations of yourself or your friends), the darker side is far less amusing. Deepfakes have been used to spread disinformation, harass individuals, and undermine trust.

Denmark has decided enough is enough. Under the new framework, if someone creates a fake video of you spouting nonsense, you can get it taken down and, potentially, collect damages. At the same time, satire and parody are safe – hoping to protect the creativity of comedy.

How does the UK do it? 

In the UK, our legal protection against deepfakes is, frankly, a bit patchy. Public figures may have the resources to be able to rely on defamation or privacy rights, but for most of us, it’s not so easy to defend yourself against this risk. 

Many people assume that “image rights” already fall neatly under intellectual property law. After all, we talk about owning our likeness in the same way we talk about owning a logo or a piece of music. But that’s not quite true. In the UK, your image is primarily protected through data protection and privacy law, not intellectual property rights. 

That means remedies are often more about how your data is used than about owning the rights to your face in a legal sense. This is what makes Denmark’s move so interesting -it reframes image and likeness as something closer to copyright – a clear, transferable right – rather than leaving it tucked away under privacy legislation. It’s a subtle but important shift that could make enforcement much simpler for individuals.  

Time for the UK to Step Up? 

Denmark has set the pace. The UK faces a choice: wait and see how much damage deepfakes can cause domestically, or (attempt to) get ahead of the curve with legislation that protects people from the start. It’s not just about preventing embarrassment online; it’s about safeguarding dignity, trust, and truth in an era where seeing isn’t always believing.