South Korea’s deepfake porn epidemic: victims demand action as crisis deepens

In South Korea, protesters are demanding government accountability for the alarming rise of deepfake pornography, with experts warning that systemic misogyny and inadequate enforcement have allowed digital sexual abuse to proliferate unchecked.

On Friday evening, around 1,200 demonstrators, representing hundreds of civic organisations, marched through downtown Seoul, chanting, “Let’s stop being anxious and scared and fight to get back our lives!”

Gathering at the Bosingak Bell Pavilion, speakers criticised the government’s lack of action and support for victims, attributing the crisis to a pervasive misogynistic porn culture.

A victim of the infamous 2018 Hanyang University “acquaintance humiliation” case shared her experience, highlighting the disparity between the perpetrator’s public persona and his actions.

“As one of the 20 victims of this case, what made me angry and scared was the fact that the perpetrator was seen as a model friend and student,” she said. “While technology continues to advance every day, our country’s law remains in the past and fails to punish criminals.” Although he was expelled for creating pornographic content using his classmates’ faces, he was ultimately acquitted in court.