A 3rd Year Middle School Boy Created a 'Deepfake Map' Alone in 2 Hours... Watched by Over 3 Million People

Increase in DDoS Attacks Following Surge in Visitors

As deepfake crimes involving the synthesis of obscene images onto women's faces have surged in schools, the military, and other places, it has been revealed that the creator of the 'Deepfake Victim School Map,' which has been accessed by over 3 million people, is a male middle school student in the 3rd grade.

The middle school student, identified as A, who created the site, told JTBC’s ‘Morning&(And)’ on the 28th that the reason for making the deepfake map was, "I heard that there are about five victims at the school I attend," and added, "When someone I know became a victim, I thought, 'This is really happening,' so I decided to create the site." According to him, the cumulative number of visits to the site has exceeded 3 million as of that day, and more than 500 schools have been registered.

[Image source=Deepfake Victim School Map Homepage Capture]

Having encountered maps that showed COVID-19 confirmed cases during the pandemic, A said he decided to create this site after learning about the deepfake victimization.

A said it took only two hours to create the site. After the site was launched, the number of visitors surged, and there were repeated attacks suspected to be DDoS attacks. He said, "As my recognition suddenly increased, there were more than 50 (DDoS) attacks."

The deepfake victim school map site he created organizes victimized schools through tip-off emails and social networking services (SNS). However, A explained that there are limitations in verifying whether the reported schools were actually victimized. He said, "If a student does not use SNS, even if others post stories or posts on Instagram, they may not be aware of the incident."

A said he will continue to make efforts to raise awareness of the victimization situation. Through a notice on the deepfake map site, he stated, "Since this incident is being called the second N-bunbang, I will work to raise awareness about this case and help more people learn about the victimization," and added, "Although there are many shortcomings, I appreciate the interest."

Meanwhile, deepfake sexual exploitation materials have recently been widely distributed based on Telegram. The Digital Sexual Crime Victim Support Center, established under the Korea Women’s Human Rights Institute affiliated with the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family, has handled 2,154 cases of deepfake victim support from April 2018 to August 25 of this year.

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