The “customer” raving about a product in a video ad may not be a real person. The before-and-after photo may have been generated by a computer. The voice endorsing a supplement may have been cloned. AI tools have made it cheap and easy to create advertising that looks and sounds real but isn’t, and until now Pennsylvania has had no law that speaks directly to it.

That could soon change. On October 7, 2026, the Pennsylvania House passed Senate Bill 806 by a vote of 163-40, giving final legislative approval to a bill the Senate had passed 48-2 in June. The bill, which would be known as the Artificial Intelligence Deceptive Advertising Act, now goes to Gov. Josh Shapiro, who can sign it, veto it, or allow it to become law without his signature. As of this writing, it is not yet law.

What SB 806 would require

The bill is short. Its core rule is in Section 4, and it targets ads that use AI in a way that could fool you about what you’re buying:

• Who it covers: Advertisers who knowingly, recklessly or willfully create and spread (or cause someone else to create and spread) an ad that uses “synthetic content” in a way that creates a false impression about the nature, origin or authenticity of the goods or services being advertised.
• What counts as synthetic content: Information, including an image, video, audio clip or text, that has been significantly modified or generated by artificial intelligence.
• What the ad must say: A disclosure that the ad contains content that was modified or generated using artificial intelligence.
• How it must appear: The disclosure must be “clear and conspicuous.” It must appear the first time the synthetic content is shown, in the same medium (a spoken disclosure for audio, an on-screen one for video), and, where technically feasible, be permanent or extremely hard to remove. Audio disclosures must be loud and slow enough to understand, and on-screen disclosures must stay up long enough to read.

For example, a company that uses an AI-generated image that makes shoppers think they are looking at a photo of the actual product would have to disclose that AI was used to create or alter the image.

What the bill does not cover

• Fiction, parody and commentary. Content that is obviously fictional, or that is parody, satire, commentary or criticism, is excluded.
• Text-only content. Although some public statements about the bill mention text, the final bill text (Printer’s Number 1808) expressly excludes content that is “limited to text.” The disclosure rule is aimed at AI-generated or altered images, video and audio.
• Honest uses of AI. The bill does not ban AI in advertising. It applies only when synthetic content is used in a way that creates a false impression about the product or service.

How it would be enforced

SB 806 gives enforcement power to the Pennsylvania Attorney General and county district attorneys. They could seek an injunction to stop a deceptive ad and bring a civil action. A court could impose a civil fine of up to $3,000 per violation and award attorney fees and court costs. The bill would take effect 60 days after it becomes law.

The bill does not create a separate private lawsuit for consumers. But it states that disclosing the use of AI does not limit any other remedy available under the law. In other words, an AI label is not a free pass: an ad that is deceptive can still be deceptive even with a disclosure attached.

Your rights today under Pennsylvania’s consumer protection law

You don’t have to wait for the Governor to act. Pennsylvania’s Unfair Trade Practices and Consumer Protection Law (UTPCPL) already prohibits “any other fraudulent or deceptive conduct which creates a likelihood of confusion or of misunderstanding.” If you bought something for personal, family or household use and lost money because of a deceptive practice, Section 9.2 of the UTPCPL lets you sue for your actual damages or $100, whichever is greater. The court may award up to three times your actual damages, plus costs and reasonable attorney fees.

At the federal level, the Federal Trade Commission’s rule on consumer reviews and testimonials (16 C.F.R. Part 465) already makes it illegal for a business to create or sell fake reviews or testimonials that misrepresent whether the reviewer exists or actually used the product. That covers AI-generated “customers,” too.

Why this matters

AI-generated ads are now everywhere: fake celebrity endorsements, “real customer” testimonials from people who don’t exist, product photos that look nothing like what arrives at your door, and cloned voices pitching investments, health products and debt relief. Older adults are frequent targets. We covered how these scams work in our guide to AI scams and deepfake fraud, and we recently wrote about another way technology is changing what you pay in personalized pricing.

If SB 806 becomes law, Pennsylvania will have a clear, written standard for when an AI-made ad has to be labeled. That gives the Attorney General and district attorneys a straightforward tool, and it gives consumers a benchmark for what honest AI advertising looks like.

What to do if you think an ad misled you

• Save the ad. Take screenshots or a screen recording, and note where and when you saw it (website, app, social media platform).
• Keep your receipts. Save order confirmations, payment records and photos of what you actually received.
• Compare what you got to what was shown. A big gap between the ad and the real product is the core of a deceptive-advertising claim.
• Be skeptical of celebrity and “expert” endorsements in social media ads, especially for investments, supplements and debt-relief offers. Look for the company’s real contact information and reviews from independent sources.
• Report it. You can file a complaint with the Pennsylvania Attorney General’s Bureau of Consumer Protection and with the FTC.
• Talk to a lawyer if you lost money. Pennsylvania’s UTPCPL allows fee-shifting, so a deceptive seller may end up paying your attorney fees.

Ginsburg Law Group represents consumers in Pennsylvania and other states who were misled by deceptive advertising, junk fees and unfair business practices. If an ad led you to pay for something that wasn’t what it claimed to be, contact us for a review.

This article is for general informational purposes only and is not legal advice. Senate Bill 806 has passed the Pennsylvania General Assembly but has not been signed into law as of October 9, 2026, and it may not become law. Consult a licensed attorney about your specific situation.

Authoritative Sources

• Pennsylvania General Assembly: Senate Bill 806 (2025-2026) bill information and history
• Senate Bill 806, Printer’s Number 1808 (final bill text, PDF)
• Pennsylvania Senate Democrats: AI Consumer Protection Bill Establishing Advertising Disclosure Standards Heads to Governor (Oct. 8, 2026)
• Unfair Trade Practices and Consumer Protection Law, Act of Dec. 17, 1968, P.L. 1224, No. 387
• 16 C.F.R. Part 465, Use of Consumer Reviews and Testimonials (eCFR)
• Pennsylvania Attorney General: File a Consumer Complaint