South Korea sees surge in deepfake sex crime video reviews

The number of deepfake sex crime videos submitted for review by the Korea Communications Standards Commission has surpassed 17,000 as of August this year. This figure already exceeds the total number of cases reported in 2025, representing a nearly 9.9 percent increase over the previous year's total of 15,808 cases.

Data provided to Representative Lee Yeon-hee indicates that deepfake technology accounted for 35.2 percent of detected online sexual abuse cases between November 2024 and October this year. The National Police Agency reported detaining 3,557 people in connection with online sexual crimes during that period, with 221 formal arrests made.

Law enforcement noted that over 90 percent of suspects involved in deepfake crimes were in their teens or 20s, a trend attributed to their familiarity with digital tools. Specifically, 1,761 suspects were in their teens and 1,228 were in their 20s.