Actor and entrepreneur Vivek Oberoi has approached the Delhi High Court, filing a civil suit seeking protection of his personality and publicity rights amid alleged widespread misuse of his identity through fake social media accounts, unauthorized merchandise and AI-generated content.
Vivek Oberoi files suit in Delhi HC against AI-generated abuse and fake social accounts
In the petition filed through lawyers Sana Rais Khan and Pranay Chitale, Oberoi has claimed that his name, image, voice, likeness and other distinctive features associated with him are being exploited without his consent for commercial and other benefits. The defendants in the lawsuit include entities like Collector’s Bazaar, ZoomMantra and IndianContent, along with unnamed individuals named John Doe.
Oberoi’s legal team has sought a permanent injunction to prevent violation of his personality rights, alleging that the defendants are actively impersonating him on platforms such as Instagram by operating fake accounts using his identity. The petition also highlights the sale of unauthorized merchandise on various e-commerce sites – including posters, T-shirts and postcards bearing his name and likeness.
A significant aspect of the lawsuit focuses on the alleged misuse of artificial intelligence and deepfake technology. Oberoi argues that AI-generated content has been used to create misleading and defamatory portrayals of him, including superimposing his face on objectionable imagery and spreading facts that he says are false. The petition describes this as potentially damaging to his reputation, causing public confusion about fake endorsements and undermining his personal identity.
Oberoi has argued that the uncontrolled use of generative AI poses a serious threat to personality and publicity rights, leading to “public confusion about false endorsements, weakening of personal identity, violation of privacy and erosion of an individual’s exclusive right to profit commercially from his or her personality.”
Since such activities are widely available online, the actor said it is almost impossible to identify each violator individually. In light of this, he has sought an omnibus ‘John Doe’ injunction to cover unnamed individuals who violate his rights.
Claiming that he has already been victimized and is likely to suffer irreparable damage to his goodwill, reputation and business interests, Oberoi has urged the High Court to order removal of unauthorized posts, merchandise and content and stop misuse of his identity in any form.
