New YouTube policy lets you request the removal of AI-generated content that uses your likeness

YouTube quietly added a new policy last month that lets you request the removal of AI-generated content featuring your likeness. The new privacy violation policy, first spotted by TechCrunch’s Sarah Perez, allows you to flag videos that “used AI to alter or create synthetic content that looks or sounds like you.”

YouTube says several factors will determine whether it considers a removal, including whether the content is altered or synthetic (and whether it’s disclosed as such), easily identifiable as the person in question or realistic.

The company will also weigh whether it could be considered a parody or satire. Another factor is whether it includes a public figure (or other well-known individual) “engaging in a sensitive behavior,” like crime, violence or endorsing a product or political candidate. TechCrunch notes the paramount importance of the latter during this pivotal election year.

The new policy falls under YouTube’s privacy violations, not misleading content. The company now requires first-party claims in most cases. The most notable exceptions are when the individual is a minor, doesn’t have access to a computer or is deceased.

YouTube will give the alleged violator 48 hours to act on the complaint. If it’s removed during that window, it’s case closed. If not, YouTube will review it.

The documentation clarifies that removal means fully removing it (and removing the individual’s name and personal info from the title, description and tags, if applicable). Blurring out faces is another option. It also explains that making the clip private isn’t allowed since that would let the poster easily make it public again.

YouTube didn’t make noise about the change, but it did hint at it earlier this year when it laid out its policies for AI-generated video. At the time, it promised, “In parallel, as we previously announced, we’re continuing to work towards an updated privacy process for people to request the removal of AI-generated or other synthetic or altered content that simulates an identifiable individual, including their face or voice.”