AI Regulation Tracker / Criminal law
Peru's Law 32314 makes AI and deepfakes a criminal aggravator in fraud, defamation and abuse cases
Peru amended its Penal Code and cybercrime law so that using artificial intelligence or deepfakes to commit an offense raises the penalty. Anyone producing or distributing synthetic media in Peru now carries heightened criminal exposure.
Peru has written artificial intelligence directly into its criminal code. Law 32314, published in the official gazette El Peruano on April 29, 2025, amends the Penal Code (Legislative Decree 635) and the Computer Crimes Law (Law 30096) so that using AI or a similar technology to commit an offense is an aggravating circumstance. In plain terms, the same crime now draws a heavier sentence when the offender used a deepfake, a cloned voice or a manipulated image to carry it out.
What the law actually adds
The statute does not create a single new offense called "deepfake." It works through aggravation. As reported, Article 46 of the Penal Code now lists the improper use of artificial intelligence or analogous technologies among the circumstances a judge weighs when setting a sentence. Article 11 of the Computer Crimes Law goes further for offenses in its scope, allowing a judge to raise the penalty by up to one-third above the legal maximum where the perpetrator relied on AI. The effect is to attach a sentencing premium to a category of conduct that Peruvian prosecutors were already pursuing under existing crimes.
Which offenses are covered
Secondary legal coverage describes the aggravation reaching a familiar list. Fraud through a simulated identity or voice, defamation spread through fabricated audio or video, plagiarism and copyright circumvention achieved with AI tools, and child sexual abuse material generated or altered by AI, including deepfakes depicting minors, all fall within the amended provisions. The child-protection language is the most severe, carrying multi-year prison terms for producing or distributing AI-generated abuse imagery. For adults, the recurring theme is impersonation: putting words, a face or a voice onto a real person to deceive, damage a reputation or extract money.
What it does not do
The law is a criminal instrument, not a content-labeling or platform-governance regime. It does not, on its own, require watermarking, impose administrative fines on companies, or install a regulator to police synthetic media before harm occurs. It also should not be confused with Law 31814, Peru's separate framework promoting the responsible use of AI for national development, and its implementing regulation, which sit in the governance and promotion track rather than the penal one. Law 32314 speaks only after an underlying crime has been committed, and its job is to make that crime cost more.
Why a US professional should track it
For a US reader, the reach is territorial but real. Peruvian criminal law governs conduct with effects in Peru, so a marketer, agency or platform that produces or distributes synthetic media reaching Peruvian audiences can face heightened exposure if that content is used to defraud, defame or abuse a person there. The measure also signals direction. Peru is among the Latin American jurisdictions folding AI misuse into ordinary criminal statutes rather than waiting for a comprehensive AI act, and that pattern is worth watching for anyone forecasting where regional and US state lawmaking may go next.
The practical standard
The operating question for compliance teams is not whether Peru now bans deepfakes. It does not ban them outright. The question is whether your organization can show that any synthetic content it creates or circulates was made with consent, is not passed off as a real person to deceive, and is documented well enough to rebut a claim of impersonation or fraud. Provenance records, consent for any real person's likeness or voice, and clear labeling are the controls that map most directly onto how this law assigns blame. None of that depends on a specific platform rule, because the exposure attaches to the underlying conduct.
A note on naming: the measure is commonly circulated as a decree, but the official instrument is Law 32314, enacted by Congress, which amends the Penal Code that is itself Legislative Decree 635. The practical content is unchanged either way.
Frequently Asked Questions
What did Peru's Law 32314 change?
It amended the Penal Code (Legislative Decree 635) and the Computer Crimes Law (Law 30096) to treat the misuse of artificial intelligence, including deepfakes, as an aggravating circumstance. Covered crimes such as fraud, defamation and child sexual abuse material carry heavier penalties when AI is used to commit them. The law was published in El Peruano on April 29, 2025.
Who does it affect?
Anyone who commits a covered offense in Peru using AI, which in practice reaches creators and distributors of deepfakes and other synthetic media, along with marketers, platforms, litigators and compliance teams handling that content. US firms whose synthetic media reaches Peruvian audiences can be exposed if the content is used to defraud, defame or abuse a person.
Does the law ban deepfakes outright?
No. It does not create a standalone deepfake ban or a labeling mandate. It raises the penalty for existing crimes when AI is used to commit them. As reported, a judge may increase a computer-crime sentence by up to one-third above the legal maximum under Article 11 of Law 30096.
How is this different from Peru's Law 31814?
Law 31814 is a separate framework promoting the responsible use of AI for national development, with its own implementing regulation, and it sits in the governance track. Law 32314 is a criminal-law amendment that applies only after an underlying offense is committed.
What is the single most important step to take now?
Map where your AI-generated audio, video or images could reach Peru, then keep consent, provenance and labeling records for each use, so you can show the content was not made to impersonate, defame or defraud a real person.
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Informational analysis for working professionals, not legal advice. Confirm how any rule applies to your situation with qualified counsel.