Koreans most targeted for deepfake pornography worldwide

A recent U.S. report found that Koreans were the top targets worldwide for deepfake pornography, while Korean celebrities were eight of the top ten famous victims.

Feminist activists demonstrate against illegal deepfake content near Gangnam Station in Seoul on Aug. 29, calling for the government to enact appropriate countermeasures. [NEWS1]

A recent report from a U.S. cybersecurity agency identified Koreans as the No.1 target for deepfake pornography creators. A separate report by the police found that approximately 60 percent of deepfake pornography victims in the country are teenagers.

A U.S.-based cybersecurity firm, Security Hero, released a 2023 report revealing that approximately half of all deepfake pornography victims across the world are Korean nationals. Based on data collected from ten pornographic websites and other video platforms such as YouTube and Dailymotion, the report concludes that Korea is the most targeted country for deepfake pornography.

For deepfake pornographic content based on celebrities, Koreans accounted for 53 percent of all content identified in the study, a figure well north that of the United States, the second-most vulnerable at 20 percent. Japan and Britain followed at ten and six percent, respectively. Korean celebrities accounted for the seven most-affected individuals, and eight of the top ten. Deepfake content created using images of the most targeted individual has surpassed five million views, with a total of 1,595 videos produced.

“The frequency with which these individuals are targeted underscores the need for comprehensive strategies to address deepfake threats,” said the report. “Such strategies should encompass legal measures, content detection technologies and public awareness campaigns aimed at protecting these individuals' rights, privacy and reputations.”

The BBC also reported on such ongoing cyber sexual crimes in Korea, mentioning the "Nth Room," a criminal case that involved blackmailing, cybersex trafficking and the distribution of sexually exploitative videos through the Telegram app between 2018 and 2020 in Korea.

“Korea has a dark history of digital sex crimes,” said the BBC. “In 2019 it emerged that men were using a Telegram chatroom to blackmail dozens of young women into performing sexual acts, in a scandal known as Nth Room.”

“Online deepfake sex crimes have surged, according to Korean police. A total of 297 cases were reported in the first seven months of this year, up from 180 in the whole of last year and 160 in 2021,” the British media added.

A screen of AI software that detects illegal deepfake content with 80 percent accuracy [NEWS1]

Compounding the problem, approximately 60 percent of deepfake victims in Korea are teenagers, according to data compiled from 2021 through 2023 by the National Police Agency.

Of the 527 deepfake cases reported to the police between 2021 and 2023, a staggering 59.8 percent involved teenagers, far outnumbering other age groups: people in their 20s accounted for 32.1 percent, those in their 30s were 5.3 percent and those in their 40s were 1.1 percent. The number of teenage victims more than tripled during this period, from 53 in 2021 to 181 in 2023. Perpetrators of such crimes were also predominantly teenagers, accounting for 73.6 percent of all cases reported to the police from January to July of this year, approximately an eight percentage point jump from 65.4 percent in 2021.

In response to growing public concern and the increasing severity of deepfake-related crimes, the Korean government is implementing countermeasures.

The Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency has established a dedicated task force to combat illegal deepfake content, and police agencies nationwide are conducting educational presentations in local schools. The Korea Communications Standards Commission, a public media regulator, has partnered with local and global platforms such as Naver, Facebook and Telegram to crack down on illegal deepfake content.

BY YOON SEUNG-JIN [yoon.seungjin@joongang.co.kr]