^

Korean Wave

JYP Entertainment vows 'strongest legal action' vs deepfake videos

Agence France-Presse - Philstar.com
JYP Entertainment vows 'strongest legal action' vs deepfake videos
Activists wearing eye masks, hold posters reading ‘Repeated deepfake sex crimes, the state is an accomplice too’ during a protest against deepfake porn in Seoul on August 30, 2024. South Korea's president called on August 27, for an investigation into deepfake porn after media reports that Telegram chatrooms were sharing explicit images of minors at schools and universities sparked public outrage.
AFP / Anthony Wallace

SEOUL, South Korea — A major K-pop agency has vowed to take the "strongest legal action" against deepfake videos depicting its artists, after local media reports exposing Telegram chat rooms for sharing AI-generated pornography sparked public outrage.

South Korea is the country most susceptible to deepfake porn, according to a 2023 report by cybersecurity startup Security Hero, with singers and actresses from the rising cultural powerhouse accounting for 53% of the individuals featured in the content it reviewed.

"We are gravely concerned about the recent spread of deepfake videos involving our artists," said a statement issued late Friday by K-pop agency JYP Entertainment, whose artists include the popular girl group Twice.

"We are in the process of collecting all relevant evidence to pursue the strongest legal action with a leading law firm, without leniency."

Earlier this week, President Yoon Suk-yeol called for an investigation into deepfake porn, with relevant agencies and police saying around 60% of victims were minors.

According to media reports, victims have included soldiers, teachers and students.

JYP's announcement comes about two months after fellow K-pop label Ador said police were investigating the creators and distributors profiting from obscene deepfake content depicting the firm's hugely popular girl group NewJeans.

Some of the offenders had already been convicted and sentenced, Ador said at the time.

Activists say South Korea is plagued by an acute epidemic of digital sex crimes, including spycams and revenge porn, with inadequate legislation to punish offenders.

In 2019, K-pop star Goo Hara took her own life after falling victim to "revenge porn" — private sex videos filmed or shared non-consensually by exes — and threats by a disgruntled ex-boyfriend.

And while South Korea is a leading technological power and increasingly a major exporter of its pop culture, it remains a socially conservative society with a poor record on women's rights.

In recent years, however, a new #MeToo generation has mobilized on a host of issues, including legalizing abortion, triggering an online backlash against so-called "radical feminism."

Before being elected, President Yoon had claimed South Korean women did not suffer from "systemic gender discrimination," despite evidence to the contrary in the form of gaps in wages and workforce participation.

He won office in 2022 in part on a campaign pledge to abolish the Ministry of Gender Equality, with some of his supporters going so far as to label the women's movement a "mental illness."

RELATED: Agency drops NCT's Taeil following sexual crime allegations

vuukle comment

DEEPFAKES

K-POP

REVENGE PORN

SOUTH KOREA

TELEGRAM

Philstar
x
  • Latest
Latest
Latest
abtest
Are you sure you want to log out?
X
Login

Philstar.com is one of the most vibrant, opinionated, discerning communities of readers on cyberspace. With your meaningful insights, help shape the stories that can shape the country. Sign up now!

Get Updated:

Signup for the News Round now

FORGOT PASSWORD?
SIGN IN
or sign in with