Over 100 Men Arrested For Making Obscene Deepfakes Of K-pop Idols For Validation From Peers, But It’s Not All Men…
More than 100 men in their teens and 20s have been arrested for creating and producing obscene deepfake videos of celebrities in South Korea.
We all remember the 70,000 men in Telegram groups who discussed how to rape and assault women and also shared disturbing tutorials and victim footage. In a new case that reminds me of the horrors of this Telegram group, over 100 men have been arrested in South Korea for creating and distributing obscene deepfake videos of K-pop idols, actors, streamers and even their own classmates. Some of these videos also featured artists under HYBE, the agency that handles groups like BTS and NewJeans.
According to news reports, the Gyeonggi Northern Police Agency has shared that 23 people have been charged with violating the Protection of Children and Youth Against S*xual Offenses Act and Punishment of S*xual Violence Crimes Special Act for running private chat rooms on Telegram to commit the offence. However, only 13 out of the 23 have been formally charged and detained and 60 users who participated in the Telegram chat rooms have also been identified and detained.
Media reports further reveal that the main suspect is a man in his 30s who created over 1100 obscene deepfake videos between August 2024 to March 2025. These AI-manipulated videos were of 30 celebrities of which many were members of girl groups. The deepfakes were shared in these secret Telegram chatrooms for the consumption of fellow ‘fans’. Sure, because that’s how fans behave. But hold on, it gets worse. The members of the chatroom used these obscene videos to sexually mock the idols and even click obscene pictures at fan events with the cutouts of the idols.
Also Read: Kim Soo Hyun Allegedly Asked Kim Sae Ron To Move To Telegram For Secrecy. Know More Here!
Another suspect who is also in his 30s produced roughly 150 AI-manipulated videos of over 70 celebs including K-pop idols, actors and streamers. And get this, he even used ‘deep voice’ technology to manipulate audio to make it seem like celebs were speaking vulgar things or using obscene language. The third suspect created more than 300 videos of his former classmates and other people and shared them in these Telegram chatrooms. As per media reports, authorities have revealed that the accused are young, unemployed men in their teens and 20s however, they had no financial motivation and were driven by ‘personal fantasies’ and seeking ‘validation’ from their peer groups.
How Did Police Track And Arrest Suspects For Creating Deepfakes Of K-Pop Idols And More Women?
The Police were able to track suspects by launching undercover operations along with international cooperation. The authorities plan to continue monitoring platforms like Telegram to arrest anyone and everyone involved in cybercrime like these. HYBE, the company that handles BTS and NewJeans, has been working with law enforcement and providing key data that helped the Police identify and track the perpetrators.
More On Cybercrimes In Entertainment Industry In South Korea
HYBE and the police had earlier teamed up to put together a hotline to deal with cybercrime related to obscene deepfake videos. They also signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) for continued cooperation. This came after HYBE filed a criminal complaint after coming across illegal videos involving their artists. While the head of Gyeonggi Police highlighted how deepfake crimes exploit celebrities, HYBE CEO vowed to continue pursuing legal action against such crimes much in line with their company’s zero-tolerance policy against it.
First Published: April 12, 2025 4:20 PM
