The AI-focused COPIED Act would make removing digital watermarks illegal

Several publishing and artists' groups have supported the COPIED Act, including SAG-AFTRA, the Recording Industry Association of America, the News/Media Alliance, and Artist Rights Alliance.

The COPIED Act aims to protect journalists and artists from having their work used by AI models without their consent4. It directs the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) to create standards and guidelines for proving content origin and detecting synthetic content, like through watermarking. The bill also prohibits tampering with content provenance information and allows content owners to sue companies that use their materials without permission.