Save children from the most dangerous room
Published: 16 Oct. 2024, 19:52
Hwang Young-ki
The author is chairman of Green Umbrella, a child welfare agency.
“I can’t trust anyone in my classroom.” “I’m scared to go to school or meet people.” “Can the fake images and my scars be permanently removed?” These are some of the grievances from kids who fell victim to deepfake crimes that have flared up like an epidemic in the country.
Deepfake — a portmanteau of deep learning and fake — is a synthetic media technology that creates fake images by using deep learning, a form of artificial intelligence (AI). With the rise of AI and its increasing accessibility, children have become both the abusers and victims of the technology.
According to National Policy Agency files submitted to the National Assembly, of 527 victims of deepfake crimes between 2021 and 2023, 59.8 percent were children and teenagers. The number sharply increased from 53 in 2021 to 81 in 2022 and 181 in 2023. Teens made up a whopping 73.6 percent of those caught for producing and sharing fake images between January and July this year.
Cyberspace has become a hornet’s nest for all kinds of crimes — illicit gambling, drug trafficking and sexual exploitation — which can contaminate and threaten the lives of children. Reports of digital sex crimes targeting children have become regular news.
Kids helplessly falling prey to the production, distribution and sharing of fabricated images and videos also must endure secondary harm through the exposure of their identities and public mockery. Foreign media have been reporting about Korea being the global epicenter for deepfake crimes. The advances of digital technologies have brought comforts to everyday life, but also galvanized online child predators and criminal solicitations.
Keeping kids safe online is not just an issue in Korea, but a universal locus of concern. Australia and Britain have enacted the Online Safety Act placing onus on social media platforms and search engines to protect children from harmful material. The European Union dictated clear rules to protect consumers and their online rights in the Digital Services Act last year. The Kids Online Safety Act — designed to protect minors from online harm by setting requirements and responsibilities for social network providers — has recently passed the Senate in the United States, which champions freedom of expression.
Last month, the Korean legislature revised a law to toughen regulations to contain deepfake sex crimes. The law has made even watching or possessing deepfake porn content illegal. The belated attention and regulatory action may be a relief, but it can hardly ensure a safe environment for children in the online community. I feel a grave sense of responsibility as the head of an institution devoted to children’s welfare.
Korean kids today need fundamental protection. Multi-layered systems are necessary so that children are not exposed to crimes in the blurry boundaries of online and offline. The laws related to information and communications networks must have detailed and specific provisions to protect minors and teenagers. The laws relevant to content production and distribution also must toughen responsibilities and duties of pertinent service providers. Companies must be proactive and eager to meet social demands on online protection of minors.
The scope of harmful materials dictated in the Youth Protection Acct must become as diverse and specific as in the laws of Britain and Australia. Online consumers including kids and their guardians must receive practical education and support so that they can identify dangers and better respond to them. Only through collaborated all-out efforts can the digital environment can become a safer place for our kids.
Stronger rules and vigilance by companies alone cannot keep our kids entirely safe. Still, they can be helpful in keeping the harmful spaces out of reach for children.
We must be attentive and eagerly participate in knitting safety nets in the online environment to make it a safer place for our kids. Korea must try its utmost to erase the disgraceful stigma as a deepfake crime flashpoint by setting good examples on keeping to online safety rules.
Translation by the Korea JoongAng Daily staff.
with the Korea JoongAng Daily
To write comments, please log in to one of the accounts.
Standards Board Policy (0/250자)