Telegram "Zero Tolerance for Deepfake Sexual Crimes"... Responding to Korean Government Efforts

KCSC Announces Results of 1st In-Person Meeting
Additional Hotline Established and Regular Practical Consultations
Commitment to Rapid Removal and Blocking of Illegal Information

Telegram has promised the South Korean government that it will apply a "zero-tolerance policy" and respond strongly to illegal information distributed on its platform. It also agreed to cooperate in various ways regarding illegal information circulating on Telegram, including not only deepfake sexual crime videos but also drugs and gambling.

On the morning of the 30th, Ryu Hee-rim, Chairman of the Korea Communications Standards Commission (KCSC), held a press briefing at the Korea Broadcasting Center in Mok-dong, Seoul, and announced the results of a face-to-face meeting with Telegram held last weekend.

Chairman Ryu said, "Among the key commitments made by Telegram, the most important is their promise to apply a zero-tolerance policy and respond strongly to illegal information distributed on Telegram going forward."

Since announcing a comprehensive countermeasure against deepfake sexual crimes in August, the KCSC has been working to establish a hotline with Telegram. In response, Telegram recently began two-way communication by deleting deepfake sexual crime videos requested by the KCSC and promptly reporting the results. Recently, the KCSC conducted practical discussions with Telegram through email exchanges and video conferences regarding deepfake sexual crime videos, and held the first face-to-face meeting over two days on the 27th and 28th.

Ryu Hee-rim, Chairman of the Korea Communications Standards Commission Photo by Yonhap News

Through this meeting, Telegram stated that it will ▲ cooperate in various ways regarding illegal information circulating on Telegram, including not only deepfake sexual crimes but also obscenity, prostitution, drugs, and gambling, and ▲ promptly delete and block illegal information on Telegram upon KCSC’s request. Telegram also promised to proactively consult with the Korean National Police Agency and the Korea Communications Commission.

The KCSC and Telegram agreed to strengthen their cooperation by establishing an additional dedicated hotline for constant contact with dedicated staff beyond the currently established hotline, and by regularizing working-level consultations.

Finally, Chairman Ryu stated, "To minimize damage caused by illegal and harmful information circulating online, such as deepfake sexual crime videos, we will strengthen international cooperation and continuously encourage overseas platform operators like Telegram to comply with domestic laws."

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