Photo: RNZ

Explainer - They have been described as a sadistic and degrading weapon - yet in New Zealand, nude deepfakes are not explicitly a crime.

NetSafe has received hundreds of complaints of non-consensual sexually explicit deepfakes this year alone, but only one deepfake porn prosecution has ever been made in New Zealand.

Legal experts say that's because the law does not adequately protect victims from non-consensual deepfakes.

ACT MP Laura McClure seeks to change that.

Her member's bill to criminalise non-consensual sexually explicit deepfakes has been pulled from the ballot.

Photo: Facebook / Laura McClure

What does the proposed law say?

The Deepfake Digital Harm and Exploitation Bill looks to close a loophole by amending existing laws to expand the definition of an 'intimate visual recording'.

It would widen what a 'recording' is to include images or videos that are created, synthesised, or altered to depict a person's likeness in intimate contexts without their consent.

It would also cover the sharing of a non-consensual pornographic deepfake.

Currently, these types of deepfakes could be an offence under the Harmful Digital Communications Act.

However, critics say the law only covers instances where the offender's intention to cause harm is proven, which can be challenging.

Earlier this month, New Zealand made what was believed to be the first deepfake porn