"Scared of Deepfakes, Giving Up Earnings"…Photographers Turning Instagram Accounts 'Private'

"Deepfake Horror" Leads to Photo Deletion on Instagram
"Worried Model Photos Might Be Used for Crime"

The photo is unrelated to the article content. [Photo source=Getty Images]

As the fear of so-called 'deepfake' pornography, which involves superimposing obscene images such as nude photos onto acquaintances' faces, spreads, photographers have started deleting posts and setting their accounts to private. This is due to concerns that models' photos might be misused for crimes.

Recently, on social networking services (SNS) like Instagram and X (formerly Twitter), numerous notices from photographers announcing the deletion of posts or deactivation of accounts have been posted. Photographers use SNS to promote their work and attract clients for shoots, generating income. However, due to worries that posted model photos could be used in deepfake sex crimes, they have made the decision to 'give up profits.'

Many are still worried about hacking even after setting their accounts to private. On X and Instagram, posts warning that "private accounts or archived photos can also be hacked" are flooding in. They share response guidelines, saying, "You can check for hacking by going to the account center and verifying the login locations."

Photographers' announcement on their Instagram accounts stating that they will make their photos private. [Photo source=Instagram capture]

Following the recent revelation of a deepfake sharing chatroom at a university where obscene images were superimposed onto female students' faces, similar Telegram chatrooms have been discovered one after another, spreading 'deepfake' fear nationwide. Victims include not only university students but also minors such as middle and high school students, as well as teachers and female soldiers. Moreover, the list of 'affected schools' circulating includes well over 100 institutions.

As public anxiety grows, the National Police Agency's National Investigation Headquarters announced plans to conduct a special crackdown on deepfake sex crimes for seven months starting from the 28th, thoroughly tracking and arresting offenders from production to distribution. According to the police, the number of crime-related cases involving fake videos and similar materials has sharply increased: 156 cases in 2021, 160 in 2022, 180 last year, and 297 from January to July this year. Among these, the number of teenage suspects familiar with information technology (IT) rose from 51 (65.4% of all suspects) in 2021 to 131 (73.6%) from January to July this year, more than doubling, prompting the Ministry of Education to begin an investigation into the situation.

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