SKorea Asks Telegram to Crack Down on Digital Sex Crimes

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Facts

  • The Korea Communications Standards Commission on Wednesday asked messaging app Telegram to delete and block sexually explicit deep fake images — created using artificial intelligence (AI) — from their platforms.[1][2]
  • This comes after South Korean Pres. Yoon Suk Yeol called for a probe into rising deepfake abuse, and morphed photos of women — including students, teachers, and military personnel — were reportedly found in one Telegram chatroom with around 220K members.[3][4]
  • The Commission said it will also set up a 24/7 hotline for victims, double the number of regulatory personnel monitoring digital sex crimes, and in addition to Telegram, engage with X (formerly Twitter), Meta, and Google to crack down on sexually explicit deepfake content.[5][6]
  • According to the National Police Agency, 180 digital sex crimes were registered in 2023 and 75.8% of the 120 suspects punished were teenagers. The Agency said it will also make a seven-month push to tackle online sex crimes.[7][8][2]
  • Under South Korea's Sexual Violence Prevention and Victims Protection Act, making and distributing sexually explicit deep fakes is punishable by five years imprisonment or a fine of 50M won ($37.5K).[9]

Sources: [1]BBC News, [2]Reuters, [3]Guardian, [4]CNA (a), [5]Bloomberg, [6]CNA (b), [7]Koreatimes, [8]The Straits Times and [9]South China Morning Post.

Narratives

  • Narrative A, as provided by Hankyoreh. South Korea's deepfake pornography crisis has exposed the dark underbelly of the nation's digital landscape, where social media and messaging platforms' strong encryption and non-cooperation with law enforcement have inadvertently created a haven for cybercriminals engaging in digital sex crimes.
  • Narrative B, as provided by Big Think. AI-powered deepfake technology is another tool for creative expression, and like other mediums, the ethical line can easily be drawn at consent and intent. The focus must now be on establishing norms, laws, and standards governing their use, balancing innovation with individual rights and public trust.

Predictions