A group that approached teenage girls, saying, 'I will inform you that your deepfake video is spreading on Telegram and tell you the distributor,' has been caught by the police. The main culprit, 'Pandora,' is a high school student who is 17 years old this year.
The Cyber Investigation Unit of the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency announced on the 29th that they had arrested and sent A (17), who used the nickname 'Pandora' on Telegram, to the prosecution. A is accused of producing 34 counts of child and adolescent sexual exploitation material against 19 female victims in their early teens, possessing 81 counts of illegal filming, and holding 1,832 counts of false videos (including deepfake videos).
The police also apprehended three accomplices, including B (16). They are being investigated for having participated in the crime after being victims of sexual exploitation material by A. A had instructed the victims to identify or lure other victims, saying, 'If you bring in five people, I will release you.'
A and his group targeted and approached young female children and adolescents through platforms like Instagram from July of last year until just before their arrest on the 19th. They lured victims to Telegram, deceiving them by saying they would check if there were any deepfake photos in exchange for sending physical pictures or money. They used the pictures obtained in this way to blackmail the victims into sending nude photos again, which were then used to produce sexual exploitation material.
A's methods are similar to those of the mastermind of the Telegram 'Self-Defense Force' arrested in January, known as 'Pastor' Kim Nok-wan (33). However, it has been determined that there is no relationship between the two.
The Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency announced that from August of last year to March of this year, in conjunction with the National Investigation Agency's 'Sweep on False Video Crimes,' they conducted crackdowns on cyber sexual violence crimes, resulting in the arrest of 224 cyber sexual violence offenders, including Pandora and the pastor, with 13 of them being detained.
The police detained C (33) and D (28) on charges of illegally filming a total of 1,584 instances of sexual intercourse scenes involving 53 women, including three children and adolescents, at an officetel. The criminal revenue of 13 million won obtained from posting and selling illegal filming materials has been confiscated and preserved.
E (52) and F (23), who operated as 'writers' on Telegram, were arrested for producing 46 counts of child and adolescent sexual exploitation material against two adolescents. They are also accused of producing and possessing 281 counts of false videos of 182 victims, including family members and acquaintances.