Digital sex crimes are at epidemic levels in South Korea, according to human rights organisations, as authorities crack down on sexually explicit deepfake content amid growing public concerns.
The country’s media regulator has held emergency talks to address the surge in deepfake porn targeting young women online.
South Korea’s National Police Agency said it received 297 reports of sexual deepfake material in the first half of this year.
Global organisation Human Rights Watch claims the Government has failed to take action on the “rampant” issue, despite knowing about it “for years”.
Background
Deepfakes are realistic fabricated or manipulated videos and/or images. They are designed to mislead viewers and can be made using AI.
This week, several South Korean media outlets reported young women had been targeted with illegal deepfakes on social media.
The messaging app Telegram was identified as a major platform for distributing this material through various online chatrooms.
It’s alleged members identify targets, collect their photos from social media, and create sexually explicit deepfakes.
One news outlet found a Telegram chatroom with over 2,340 members, allegedly dedicated to producing deepfakes of middle and high school students.
President
Following the media reports, South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol called for a “thorough investigation” into digital sex crimes and ways to “eradicate them.”
President Yoon said: “Some may dismiss it as a mere prank, but it is clearly a criminal act that exploits technology under the shield of anonymity.”
Meeting
On Wednesday, South Korea’s media regulator met with the Seoul Metropolitan Government to address illegal sexually explicit deepfake videos.
Following the meeting, the two authorities announced the establishment of a 24-hour hotline dedicated to the rapid removal of these videos.
The media regulator is also calling on social media platforms, including Telegram, to help regulate content.
It said: “We urgently requested support to enable direct communication with Telegram and the establishment of an ongoing cooperative relationship.”
Telegram
This week, Telegram CEO Pavel Durov, was charged by French authorities with enabling criminal activities on the platform.
These criminal activities are alleged to include drug trafficking, fraud, and distributing sexually explicit images of minors.
Telegram has stated that Durov has “nothing to hide,” while his supporters have accused the French government of restricting free speech.
