Colombia took an important step in the criminal regulation of the misuse of emerging technologies with the approval of a reform to the Penal Code that introduces an aggravating factor for the use of artificial intelligence in cases of identity theft.
The amendment to Article 296 provides for an increase in the penalty, raising the fine by up to a third when personal misrepresentation is committed using tools such as deepfakes. The regulation also incorporates key definitions such as “identity,” “individuality,” and “artificial intelligence technologies,” providing legal clarity in the face of these new criminal phenomena. In addition, the Attorney General’s Office is required to create a traceability system to track patterns and techniques of impersonation using AI.
Finally, a mandate is established to design a comprehensive public policy for the prevention of the misuse of these technologies, promoting ethical principles, institutional responsibility, and intersectoral cooperation to protect the identity of citizens.
