AI Frontier Institute

Relating to financial exploitation or financial abuse using artificially generated media or phishing communications; providing a civil penalty; creating a criminal offense.

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Texas S.B. 2373 became law and took effect September 1, 2025. It adds Chapter 100B to the Civil Practice and Remedies Code and Section 32.56 to the Penal Code to address financial exploitation using artificially generated media or phishing communications. Section 100B.001 defines "artificial intelligence," "artificially generated media" (media created or modified with AI or other software with intent to deceive), "financial exploitation" (as defined in Finance Code Section 281.001), and "phishing communication." Section 100B.002 makes a person liable for damages for knowingly or intentionally disseminating such media or phishing communications for the purpose of financial exploitation. A prevailing claimant gets actual damages, including mental anguish and the defendant's attributable profits, plus court costs and reasonable attorney's fees. Courts may issue temporary restraining orders and temporary or permanent injunctions. Section 100B.003 allows the attorney general to sue for a civil penalty of up to $1,000 per day of dissemination, in a Travis County district court or a county where the events occurred. Section 100B.004 lets the person who is the subject of an action under 100B.002 or 100B.003 use a confidential identity (a pseudonym with no other identifying information). It limits who may know the true identity and requires contempt for violating a nondisclosure order. Penal Code Section 32.56 makes it an offense to knowingly engage in financial abuse (as defined in Section 32.55) through disseminated artificially generated media, or by deceiving or manipulating someone into giving personal, financial, or identifying information electronically. Penalties scale with the value of the property involved, from a Class B misdemeanor (under $100) up to a first-degree felony ($150,000 or more). Sections 100B.002(d), 100B.003(c), and 32.56(d) protect interactive computer service providers, telecommunications services, and FCC-licensed radio or television stations from liability for content provided by others. Under Section 3, Section 100B.002 applies only to causes of action that accrue on or after the effective date.

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