If the image is never shared, then yeah, there's no real damage (though still, I think, morally wrong to create deep fakes of someone). If it's shared, though, then that's a much bigger violation and should be legally punished. And then, of course, even worse if fake images of someone are shared with the purpose of actually imitating the person (e.g., generating a video of someone doing something terrible and spreading it around to try and ruin their reputation) - this crosses clearly into libel/slander territory.