A proposed law in Mexico could send people to prison for up to six years for creating or sharing memes, stickers, or artificial intelligence-generated content without the subject's permission. The initiative has ignited a fierce national debate about the balance between protecting individual dignity and preserving freedom of expression in the digital age.
Federal Deputy Armando Corona Arvizu from the ruling Morena party submitted the bill on September 23, 2025. The proposed legislation, called the "Ley de Protección de la Dignidad Digital" or Digital Dignity Protection Act, seeks to add two new articles to Mexico's Federal Penal Code .
The new Article 211 Bis 8 would impose prison sentences of three to six years and fines of up to 600 days' salary for anyone who creates, manipulates, or distributes images, videos, audio recordings, or digital representations using editing technology or artificial intelligence without consent. The law would apply when this content is used to ridicule, harass, impersonate, or damage someone's reputation .
Article 211 Bis 9 would increase these penalties by half when the victims are minors, people with disabilities, or public servants. Stiffer sentences would also apply if the content spreads widely on social networks and causes proven harm to someone's personal, work, or psychological life .
Corona Arvizu argues the proposal addresses modern forms of digital violence rather than limiting free expression. He focused particularly on the dangers of deepfakes, which are fake images or videos generated with AI that appear authentic. The legislator stated that the creation of stickers, memes, and AI content without consent represents a form of violence that should not be normalized. He also cited statistics from Mexico's National Institute of Statistics and Geography showing over 18.9 million Mexicans experienced online abuse in 2024, with memes and stickers often used as tools of harassment .
This is not Corona Arvizu's first attempt to regulate digital content. In February 2024, he introduced another bill to punish the spread of fake audio recordings of public figures. He has consistently described the misuse of digital manipulation technologies as a threat to personal integrity and social harmony .
The proposal has generated heated discussion across Mexico. Organizations and social media users warn that broad application of the law could lead to censorship of satirical or humorous content, particularly material directed at government officials. Legal experts and digital rights advocates fear a chilling effect on free expression, with ordinary users, journalists, and cartoonists potentially facing criminal charges for humorous or critical content .
Critics point to the law's vague language, particularly terms like "ridicule" and "damage to reputation," as problematic. They worry these subjective terms could be weaponized to suppress political dissent and satire. Many fear that even mild jokes or parodies of public figures could become prosecutable offenses in a country where humor and memes play significant roles in public debate about politicians and policies .
The debate also touches on constitutional issues. Mexico's constitution guarantees freedom of expression in Articles 6 and 7. Under international human rights law, restrictions on speech must be clearly defined, necessary, proportionate, and serve a legitimate purpose in a democratic society. Critics argue the sweeping law that criminalizes memes would likely fail these tests .
This is not the first time Mexican legislators have attempted to regulate online content. In 2018, politicians in Veracruz passed legislation that could imprison people for posting "harmful or malicious" images online, though the state governor planned to veto what he called an "unconstitutional" law that violated freedom of expression .
In 2015, Congresswoman Selma Guadalupe Gómez Cabrera of the Green Party submitted a legislative initiative to the Sonora State Congress that would have considered visual representations of people defamatory. That proposal, which contained provisions that organizations like ARTICLE 19 said would disproportionately restrict freedom of expression, was later dropped after drawing widespread criticism .
The current federal proposal comes at a time when Mexico faces serious challenges with press freedom. The country currently ranks 149 out of 180 nations in the World Press Freedom Index, according to Reporters Without Borders. Five Mexican states already have laws restricting political caricatures or memes, though authorities rarely enforce them .
Meanwhile in Puebla, Governor Alejandro Armenta has announced plans to review the state's cyberassault law to ensure public servants do not receive special protections. He wants to guarantee the law will not restrict criticism or commentary about officials. The president of the Puebla Congress's governing board, Laura Artemisa GarcÃa Chávez, agreed that reforms must protect free expression and maintain public scrutiny of government officials .
The initiative places Mexico within a global conversation about how to regulate AI-generated content and deepfakes. At least 28 U.S. states have enacted laws related to deepfakes in political communications, though most focus on disclosure requirements rather than outright bans .
The bill now awaits review by the Chamber of Deputies. If approved, Mexico would join a small number of countries with criminal penalties specifically targeting unauthorized memes and digitally manipulated content. The outcome could fundamentally reshape how Mexicans engage with politics and public figures online, determining whether humorous criticism becomes classified as criminal activity .