Spain's new bill: unmarked AI-generated content will face huge fines

The Spanish government recently passed a new bill aimed at imposing high fines on companies that do not correctly label artificial intelligence (AI) content to combat "deep falsification".

Digital Transformation Minister Oscar Lopez said at a press conference that the bill refers to the EU's Artificial Intelligence Act, which stipulates strict transparency requirements for artificial intelligence systems considered high-risk.

Lopez pointed out that while improving the quality of life, artificial intelligence may also be used to spread misinformation and attack democracy, which poses potential risks. He stressed that anyone could fall victim to a “deep fake” attack that misleads the public through artificial intelligence technology editing or generating videos, photos and audio that disguises itself as real content.

Under the new bill, failure to properly label content generated by AI will be considered "seriously illegal" and can be fined up to €35 million (approximately US$38.2 million) or the amount will be calculated based on 7% of the company's global annual turnover. In addition, the bill will prohibit some manipulation, such as the use of subconscious technology to influence vulnerable groups. Lopez mentioned that chatbots may encourage gambling people to gamble, while certain toys may guide children to participate in dangerous activities.

The bill also prohibits institutions from using artificial intelligence to classify or rank individuals through biometric data, which affects their likelihood of obtaining social benefits or assessing the risk of crime. However, based on national security considerations, real-time biometric monitoring can still be used in public places.

The implementation of the new regulations will be subject to the newly established AI regulator AESIA, but specific circumstances involving data privacy, crime, elections, credit ratings, insurance and capital markets will be subject to the management of relevant regulatory agencies. The bill still requires approval from the House of Commons before it can officially come into effect, and Spain will become one of the first EU countries to implement this series of regulations.