[Journalism Internship] One photo, everlasting trauma: Deepfake exploitation prompts legal changes
Published: 27 Nov. 2024, 18:09
Updated: 02 Dec. 2024, 09:50
Cho Ian, Kim Seohyun, Kim Yewon (Sally), Lee Hyori, Lee Seungjoon, Lee Sihyun
In a world where youth exposure to social media is increasing, there has been a rise in victims who are exploited by hackers creating sexual content. In response to this issue, the National Assembly passed an amendment to the Special Act on Punishment of Sexual Violence Crimes on Sept. 24, along with a few other amendments. However, the effectiveness in preventing the crimes remains a question.
The dark past of Korea's digital sex crimes
Korea is notorious for the ubiquity of digital sex crimes, according to the BBC.
Deepfakes are videos, pictures or audio clips made with artificial intelligence that closely resemble the real model. According to Hankyoreh, a Korean newspaper, many people manipulate deepfakes for sexually exploitative content. It is often spread on the digital social media platform Telegram, making it extremely difficult for authorities to track the deepfakes’ origins.
![Deepfake technology overlays faces onto another image to generate artificial content. [YONHAP]](https://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/data/photo/2024/12/02/5d4a0716-bd63-4266-b6e2-6e3f875b25bf.jpg)
Deepfake technology overlays faces onto another image to generate artificial content. [YONHAP]
In 2019, “Nth Room,” one of the biggest sexual exploitation rings on Telegram in Korea, was uncovered. According to Won Eun-ji, an activist fighting digital sex crimes on Telegram, group chats were made to abuse and humiliate certain real-life acquaintances, partly by including their faces on nude bodies. More than 100 videos and 5,000 sexual images were produced and dispersed throughout this community, some of which incorporated deepfake technology. Many victims included women as well as children and teenagers. In 2020, more than 1,000 ringleaders and associates were arrested for their involvement in the illegal pornographic ring.
Serious laws and legislation preventing future cases of digital sex crimes, however, were not passed at the time. Deepfake crimes, meanwhile, continued rising with perpetrators going unpunished.
Only in 2020 was the issue addressed, when the National Assembly adapted to the rise of deepfake sex crimes by changing the Sexual Violence Punishment Act of 2020. It was altered to make offenders face imprisonment of up to five years and fines of up to 50 million won ($35,525).
Reports from the police on Oct. 25 mentioned that 474 individuals were arrested for deepfake sex crimes from January to October of this year. Out of those individuals 381, or 80.3 percent, of them were teenagers.
Despite the changed law, the National Police Agency reported that there were 180 cases regarding deepfake sex crimes in 2023, up from the 160 cases reported in 2022. According to the Supreme Court's database, 35 out of 71 cases were suspended from 2020 to 2023. Only 31 perpetrators were sentenced to prison out of the remaining 36 cases. Only five individuals were punished for committing deepfake sex crimes while the others committed general sex crimes.
The rapid development of artificial intelligence in recent months is thought to be one of the reasons for the increase in digital sex crimes. According to The Korea Times, Kim Min-ho, a professor at Sungkyunkwan University Law School, said, “Deepfakes have existed for several years, but they became a social issue once non-experts could create them easily without cost.”
In a bid to draw the government’s attention to the issue, some 6,000 women held a protest against deepfakes on Sept. 21 in front of Hyehwa Station in Jongno District, central Seoul. The illegal content sexualizing countless women was available without any penalty, sparking outrage.
The protest led to an urgent National Assembly meeting by the Gender Equality and Family Committee on Sept. 23 and gave birth to the Deepfake Sexual Crime Prevention Law on Sept. 26.
Objectives of the deepfake law
The law states that “any person who produces, imports or exports child or youth sexual exploitation materials shall be punished by imprisonment with labor for an indefinite term or for a term of at least five years,” per Article 11 concerning the Production or Distribution of Child or Youth Sexual Exploitation Materials.
Prior to the amendment, the Act on the Protection of Children and Youth against Sex Offenses handed down a one-year prison sentence with manual labor for blackmail and three years for forcing a minor to do things against their will. The amendment changed the punishments to three years of penal servitude and five years for coercion of a minor.
![The Legislation and Judiciary Committee holds a plenary session at the National Assembly on Sept. 25 and passes the revision to the Act on Special Cases Concerning Punishments for Sexual Crimes. [YONHAP]](https://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/data/photo/2024/12/02/fa9a097b-1ec0-4063-8729-21b6c172a1f6.jpg)
The Legislation and Judiciary Committee holds a plenary session at the National Assembly on Sept. 25 and passes the revision to the Act on Special Cases Concerning Punishments for Sexual Crimes. [YONHAP]
Furthermore, parliament also passed amendments to the Juvenile Protection Act and Victims Prevention Act to reinforce the protection of digital sex crime victims. The laws and amendments aimed to repair the damage caused by the issue at hand.
The domestic urgency of the deepfake law
Legal action for deepfake crimes is long overdue, however, according to online security firm Security Hero, which said that Korea is in desperate need of laws against deepfakes.
The need to protect women and children from deepfake sexual crimes rings the loudest alarm in Korea because the country is specifically the most targeted by deepfake pornography, according to a study unveiling that a large majority — 53 percent — of individuals featured in global deepfakes are Korean actors and singers. The magnitude of this problem reached a global level last year.
Telegram saw a record surge in the number of Korea-based victims who were women last month, from 116,998 to 159,208 according to Hankyoreh’s study on the details behind this spike, with Korean Telegram users under 20 increasing the most, prompting great concerns.
“As people increase their media exposure, they become less averse to digital sex crimes, while simultaneously becoming more prone to copycat crimes,” according to a study by Jeong Hee-jin, a project director at Tacteen Naeil, a private organization that helps teenage and child victims of sex crimes.
![Data by the National Police Agency released by Democratic Party Rep. Yang Bu-nam, a member of the National Assembly Public Administration and Security Committee, shows that most of the victims are teenagers. [YONHAP]](https://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/data/photo/2024/12/02/bb981d0d-5291-4b88-843c-9c480fd38cfb.jpg)
Data by the National Police Agency released by Democratic Party Rep. Yang Bu-nam, a member of the National Assembly Public Administration and Security Committee, shows that most of the victims are teenagers. [YONHAP]
The future of Korean deepfake crimes: What do people want?
The government has taken multiple measures throughout the past few months to prevent the spread and exacerbation of Korea’s deepfake issue, such as the release of a comprehensive plan in November that outlined stricter mandates and regulations in hopes of addressing deepfake-facilitated sexual exploitation. However, doubts have remained throughout the entire process.
Many perpetrators frequently bypass restrictions by creating new channels or migrating to different platforms that offer them an equal, if not greater, level of privacy regarding their messages, allowing deepfake video trading and acquisition to be facilitated without a risk of getting caught. According to a BBC article published in September, apps like Telegram are a “prime space for criminal behavior to flourish” as they are known for having a “light touch” when it comes to moderation.
Protesters have demanded stricter regulations on the punishment for deepfake video trading, as well as protection for the victims and the vulnerable.
As a victim herself put it in an anonymous interview with local news outlet MBC in September, “It does help to increase our alertness when the sentences are prolonged, but the actual problem is that most perpetrators will think ‘you can’t catch me’ instead of actually being deterred.”
![University students and women's rights groups hold a press conference denouncing the recent series of deepfake sex crimes targeting women on Aug. 29. [YONHAP]](https://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/data/photo/2024/12/02/86f64dec-cde9-4b00-bd53-c0dcee4c4e7f.jpg)
University students and women's rights groups hold a press conference denouncing the recent series of deepfake sex crimes targeting women on Aug. 29. [YONHAP]
BY CHO IAN, KIM SEOHYUN, KIM YEWON (SALLY), LEE HYORI, LEE, SEUNGJOON, LEE SIHYUN
with the Korea JoongAng Daily
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