Law / United States / Illinois
Child sexual abuse material, computer-generated and digitally altered depictions
720 ILCS 5/11-20.1 (P.A. 104-245, eff. Jan. 1, 2026)
A citation is an address, not a summary. The first part names the law; what follows narrows it to the exact section, article or paragraph.
In force 8 months, effective 1 January 2026.
An AI prohibited practices rule binding public and private bodies.
As of 6 September 2026.
What it requires
- An artificial-intelligence-generated or digitally altered image or video that is or appears to be a child under 18 is child sexual abuse material regardless of how it was produced; do not film, produce, disseminate, solicit, or possess one.
- A still-image violation is a Class 1 felony and a moving-image violation a Class X felony for most violations, each with a mandatory minimum fine between $1,000 and $2,000 and a maximum fine of $100,000; every tier becomes a Class X felony, or a mandatory 9-year minimum for a repeat offender, where the child depicted is under 13.
If you get it wrong
Criminal exposureYes
Criminal exposure note
Class 1 felony (still image) or Class X felony (film, videotape, or other moving depiction) for most violations of subsection (a), each with a mandatory minimum fine of $1,000 to $2,000 (depending on which paragraph of subsection (a) was violated) and a maximum fine of $100,000; a subsection (a)(6) possession violation is a Class 3 felony (still) or Class 2 felony (moving) with a $1,000 mandatory minimum and $100,000 maximum. Where the child depicted is under 13, every tier in subsection (c) becomes a Class X felony (or Class 2 for the subsection (a)(6) possession offense), and a defendant with a qualifying prior conviction faces a mandatory minimum of 9 years (or, for the possession offense, a Class 1 felony).
Penalty structure
The $100,000 maximum fine is uniform across every tier of subsection (c) and (c-5); the mandatory minimum fine varies by paragraph of subsection (a), from $1,000 (paragraphs (2) and (6)) to $1,500 (paragraph (3)) to $2,000 (paragraphs (1), (4), (5), (7), and every subsection (c-5) tier for a victim under 13).
- Rule
- Fixed only
- As of
- 6 September 2026
- Minimum
- 1,000
- Currency
- USD
- Fixed cap
- 100,000
What it reaches
Obligation class
Prohibition
What this law does
Drafted with AI from the cited sources under the direction of UnGovr staff. UnGovr holds editorial responsibility for this page.
Section 11-20.1(a)(7) defines child sexual abuse material to include a film, photograph, or other visual medium or depiction by computer that is or appears to be a person under 18, regardless of the method by which it is created, adopted, or modified to appear as such, a technology-neutral test that reaches an artificial-intelligence-generated or AI-altered depiction on the same footing as a photograph of a real event.
Producing, disseminating, or possessing such material is a felony under subsection (c): a still-image violation is a Class 1 felony and a moving-image violation a Class X felony for most paragraphs of subsection (a), each carrying a mandatory minimum fine and a maximum fine of $100,000, with the mandatory minimum ranging from $1,000 to $2,000 depending on which paragraph of subsection (a) was violated; subsection (c-5) raises every tier to a Class X felony, and a repeat offender to a mandatory 9-year minimum term, where the child depicted is under 13.
The section was renamed from Child Pornography to Child Sexual Abuse Material by Public Act 104-245, effective January 1, 2026, without changing the underlying prohibition.
When LexLint raises it
generates_content
Read the law
official text, Illinois Compiled Statutes, Illinois General Assembly (ilga.gov)