First Conviction Under Federal Deepfake Law for Cyberstalking and Child Exploitation
Severity: Medium (Score: 54.6)
Sources: Myfox28Columbus, Nbcnews
Summary
James Strahler II, a 37-year-old man from Columbus, Ohio, has become the first person convicted under the federal Take It Down Act, which criminalizes nonconsensual intimate deepfakes. Strahler pleaded guilty to charges of cyberstalking and producing obscene visuals of child sexual abuse material. He used over 100 AI models to create explicit AI-generated videos and images, including those of minors, which he distributed online. The Department of Justice reported that Strahler posted over 700 images on a site dedicated to child sexual abuse and had 2,400 explicit images on his phone. His actions involved using images of local boys and sending nonconsensual nude images of adult women to their coworkers. Strahler was arrested in June 2025 and is currently awaiting sentencing. The Take It Down Act was signed into law in May 2025, aiming to protect victims from such cybercrimes. Key Points: • James Strahler II is the first person convicted under the Take It Down Act for deepfake crimes. • Strahler created and distributed over 700 nonconsensual AI-generated images and videos. • The Take It Down Act mandates the removal of nonconsensual material within 48 hours of reporting.