청 "Deepfake Sexual Exploitation Material, Tracked and Strictly Punished... Currently Investigating Alpeoseu Situation"

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Ji-eun] The Blue House has announced that it will thoroughly track down and strictly punish sexual exploitation materials created through deepfake (synthesis) technology. Regarding RPS (Real Person Slash) involving real individuals, it stated that understanding the current situation is a priority.

On the 10th, Ko Joo-hee, head of the Blue House Digital Communication Center, made these remarks in response to public petitions titled "Strong Punishment for Sexual Crimes Using Deepfake Technology" and "Reporting Sexual Crimes in Male-Dominated Communities."

Deepfake is a technology that synthesizes faces into videos. A petition demanding punishment was raised because female celebrities' faces were being used in pornographic materials involving criminal acts, which garnered 390,000 supporters. Another petition demanding punishment claimed that photos of ordinary people were being distributed on secret boards of communities mainly used by men, gaining 230,000 supporters.

Center head Ko said, "Since 2020, the government has been strictly responding at the whole-government level to sexual exploitation crimes targeting women and children, such as the 'Doctor's Room' and 'Nth Room' cases," adding, "Since December last year, the police have been conducting focused crackdowns on the production and distribution of false videos to eradicate illegal synthesized materials using deepfake technology."

Ko also stated, "We are conducting focused crackdowns on suppliers who produce and distribute illegal sexual exploitation materials, including illegal distribution networks on platforms like Telegram and Discord, as well as on demand-side individuals who purchase, possess, or view such materials," and added, "The police will use various systems such as the 'Illegal Filming Tracking System' and the 'Cyber Illegal Information Response Cooperation System' to track and strictly punish offenders to the end."

Support measures for victims of deepfake technology abuse were also mentioned. Ko said, "The Digital Sexual Crime Victim Support Center operates 24 hours a day, providing psychological treatment not only to victims but also to their parents and families, and actively deletes victim videos to prevent further spread," adding, "In January, related laws were amended to allow deletion of false videos or child and youth sexual exploitation materials without the victim's request, thereby establishing victim protection measures."

Regarding the petition demanding strong punishment for RPS users, Ko stated, "RPS appears in various forms and degrees," and "Since the scope of RPS is broad and diverse, understanding the current situation is a priority."

She continued, "However, cases involving drawings depicting sexual acts of children and adolescents, or using false videos (deepfakes) to sexualize specific individuals, are punishable under current law," adding, "In other cases, acts that cause sexual shame to the parties involved should be avoided."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.