FCC Proposes New Rules for AI Disclosure in Robocalls and Texts

FCC Wants Companies to Disclose the Use of AI in Calls, Texts

The FCC is amping up its fight against AI-generated phone calls with new rules that would require companies to disclose to customers any use of AI in calls or texts. "That means before any one of us gives our consent for calls from companies and campaigns, they need to tell us if they are using this technology," says FCC Chair Jessica Rosenworcel. "It also means that callers using AI-generated voices need to disclose that at the start of a call." The move comes after the FCC fined Democratic consultant Steve Kramer $6 million for allegedly orchestrating an AI deepfake of President Biden's voice ahead of the New Hampshire presidential primary. The agency then declared that robocalls that use AI-generated voices are illegal, citing a 1991 law designed to protect consumers from pre-recorded automated calls. In late June, Rosenworcel sent letters to the CEOs of nine telecom providers, asking about the measures they were taking to avoid fraudulent robocalls that spread misinformation. The proposed new rules build on that by requiring AI disclosures. "This provides consumers with an opportunity to identify and avoid those calls or texts that contain an enhanced risk of fraud and other scams," the FCC says. For the purpose of the new ruling, the FCC suggests defining an AI-generated call as "a call that uses any technology or tool to generate an artificial or prerecorded voice or a text using computational technology or other machine learning, including predictive algorithms and large language models, to process natural language and produce voice or text content to communicate with a called party over an outbound telephone call." The FCC notes that it wants to ensure any rules protect "positive uses of AI to help people with disabilities utilize the telephone networks." It now seeks public comment on the rules ahead of a final vote. Rosenworcel's proposal has the support of her colleagues, though GOP Commissioner Brendan Carr warned, "there is a risk of overdoing it [with AI regulation] early on." Commissioner Nathan Simington, also a Republican, stressed that any rules should not allow for actively monitoring phone calls. "The idea that the commission would put its imprimatur on even the suggestion of ubiquitous third-party monitoring of telephone calls for the putative purpose of 'safety' is beyond the pale," he said. The proposal highlights several scam call detection technologies in development. Google's solution taps Gemini Nano and would run locally on a smartphone without connecting to the internet. Microsoft offers Azure Operator Call Protection for telecom operators.

FCC proposes new AI rules for robocallers to ignore

That said, the FCC is considering exceptions for individuals with speech or hearing disabilities using AI-generated voice software. If you're tired of blocking AI-generated calls and messages on your Android phone or iPhone, you'll be pleased to know that the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is intensifying its fight against robocallers who use AI in their communications. As part of this initiative, the regulator is trying to propose new rules that will make it mandatory for callers to explicitly state whether they intend to use AI in their calls and text messages at any point in the future. These disclosures will also have to be used for AI-generated calls, which the FCC notes "contain an enhanced risk of fraud and other scams."