European privacy regulators are tightening their language around AI-generated images and video that depict real people without consent. The EDPB’s support for a joint Global Privacy Assembly statement signals that synthetic media is now being treated as a mainstream data protection issue, not just a content moderation problem.
AI-generated imagery and protection of privacy: EDPB supports joint Global Privacy Assembly’s statement
The European Data Protection Board said it has signed a joint statement on AI-generated imagery and privacy protection coordinated by the Global Privacy Assembly. The statement focuses on the risks created when AI systems generate realistic images and videos of individuals without consent, a use case that raises direct questions about lawful processing, personal data handling, and downstream harm.
While the announcement is framed as a joint policy signal rather than a new enforcement action, the message is clear: privacy regulators are treating synthetic imagery as a data protection matter. For teams building or deploying image and video generation systems, that puts consent, provenance, and safeguards around depictions of identifiable people much closer to the center of compliance review.
- Privacy risk in synthetic media is moving from abstract concern to coordinated regulator attention across jurisdictions.
- Products that generate or manipulate realistic depictions of people may face higher scrutiny around consent, lawful basis, and misuse prevention.
- Data teams should expect tougher questions on training data, identity likeness, and controls that limit non-consensual image generation.