Calls for stronger preventive measures mount as many victims are minors
The number of deepfake sex crime videos deleted or blocked by South Korean authorities has surged, data showed Monday.
According to data cited by Rep. Park Choong-kwon of the People Power Party, the Korea Communications Standards Commission took action against 15,808 deepfake sex crime videos from January to July this year. Of them, two were removed with the provider's cooperation, and access to the remaining 15,806 was restricted.
The seven-month tally already accounts for 68 percent of last year’s total of 23,107 cases, and the authorities expect it to exceed that number by December.
Enforcement activity has climbed sharply each year — 1,913 cases in 2021, 3,574 in 2022, 7,187 in 2023, and 23,107 in 2024.
Since 2020, the KCSC has taken corrective measures against overseas illegal pornography sites and peer-to-peer platforms distributing deepfake sex crime videos based on its own investigations or in response to public complaints, in accordance with the Act on Special Cases Concerning the Punishment of Sexual Crimes.
Seperate data shows victims of digital sex crimes involving image manipulation such as deepfakes are predominantly minors and people in their 20s.
Of the 540 victims of deepfake pornography reported to the Digital Sex Crime Victim Support Center under the Women’s Human Rights Institute of Korea, as of July, 256 were in their 10s or younger, while 240 were in their 20s.
Although the law penalizes the production and distribution of such materials, it is difficult to impose penalties on platforms with servers based overseas or to track down offenders, according to experts.
“As access to generative AI technology becomes easier, we are entering an era where anyone can create deepfake pornography with little effort. The current practice of blocking such videos only after they have already spread has clear limitations,” said Lee Yoon-ho, a professor of police administration at Dongguk University.
“To break the cycle of crime, a comprehensive response is urgently needed across legislation, the judiciary and administration. This should include tougher sentencing standards for sex crimes involving AI, international cooperation to crack down on overseas servers, and the mandatory introduction of technical safeguards such as watermarks on AI-generated content."
cjh@heraldcorp.com
