Police Reluctant... Teacher Victim of Deepfake Catches Perpetrator Themselves

Analyzing Classroom Background and Composition in Photo to Identify Perpetrator

Teachers who suffered damage from 'deepfake' pornography discovered that the police were lukewarm in their response, citing difficulties in investigation, and ended up collecting evidence themselves to identify the culprit student.

On the 29th, Yonhap News reported, citing the police, that the Namdong Police Station in Incheon is investigating a teenage high school student, A, on charges including violation of the Special Act on the Punishment of Sexual Crimes. A is suspected of using artificial intelligence (AI)-based deepfake technology last month to superimpose the faces of female teachers at school onto nude photos or illegally filming them and distributing the images on social networking services (SNS).

Two victim teachers learned on July 23 through acquaintances that their illegally filmed images were circulating on SNS. They then visited the Namdong Police Station and Gyeyang Police Station, which are responsible for their respective residential areas, to request investigations. However, the Namdong Police Station expressed reluctance at the incident reception desk, stating, "Cooperation from X (formerly Twitter) is necessary, but responses are rare and can take several months," and the Gyeyang Police Station did not even accept the case.

Due to the police's lukewarm response, the teachers took it upon themselves to collect evidence. They feared that the damage would increase the longer the investigation was delayed. The teachers identified that the photos circulated on SNS were taken in a specific classroom based on the background in the images, and by analyzing the photo composition one by one, they found the seat from which all the photos could have been taken, allowing them to point to A as the suspect. It is known that the case was officially filed with the police only after this information was reported to them.

One of the victim teachers said in a phone interview with Yonhap News, "Because the photo backgrounds were poorly erased, we were able to identify the classroom and the suspect," adding, "The formal investigation only began after I personally submitted a 13-page A4 report to the investigator." He pointed out, "We were lucky to be in a situation where we could find the suspect, but in cases of digital sex crimes, there are limits to police investigations, so many victims end up having no choice but to give up," and emphasized, "The limitations of investigations and victim support measures need to be improved."

The police suspect that A shared the videos through Telegram and other platforms and are conducting digital forensic work. A police official stated, "We are investigating reports that photos combining and filming ordinary people and students, besides the two victim teachers, have also been distributed," and added, "We will also verify the illegality."

Meanwhile, it has been identified that nearly 200 cases of direct or indirect damage to students and teachers from deepfake sexual exploitation materials have occurred nationwide in schools this year alone. On the 28th, the Ministry of Education announced that, based on data collected from 17 metropolitan and provincial offices of education, a total of 196 cases of deepfake damage to students and teachers were recorded from January this year until the day before. Among these, 186 cases involved student victims and 10 involved teachers, with 179 cases currently under investigation.

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