South Korean Deepfake Porn Incident Sparks International Concern

Recently, South Korea has experienced a surge in "deepfake" incidents involving a large number of pornographic images and videos, including those of underage girls. This technology uses AI to synthesize false content, such as voices and facial expressions.

Several Korean women have sought help on Chinese social platforms like Weibo and Xiaohongshu, hoping to amplify the issue and prompt authorities to take action. Eun-min (pseudonym), a 20-year-old, has been posting on Xiaohongshu since August 26, attempting to spread the message in English, Japanese, and Chinese to alert Chinese nationals in Korea to stay safe.

According to Korean police reports, there have been 297 cases of deepfake cyber-pornography crimes in the first seven months of this year, with 131 of the suspects being teenagers. The actual problem may be more severe than official data suggests.

The South Korean government and ruling party plan to increase the maximum sentence for such crimes from five to seven years. However, enforcement has gray areas, and merely possessing deepfake pornographic material does not necessarily lead to punishment.

Eun-min and other Korean women hope to punish the offenders and tighten regulation of social platforms. Their efforts have been met with support and encouragement from Chinese netizens.