Seven Lab Colleagues Targeted in 1,141 Deepfakes; Chinese Student Sentenced to 18 Months in Prison

[Financial News] A Chinese international student who was indicted for creating more than 1,000 sexually exploitative materials by synthesizing the faces of laboratory colleagues using deepfake technology was sentenced to prison in the first trial.
According to legal sources on the 10th, the Seoul Northern District Court’s Criminal Division 5, presided over by Judge Kwon So-yong, sentenced Mr. A, 30, who had been detained and indicted on charges of habitual editing and distribution of false videos in violation of the Act on Special Cases Concerning the Punishment of Sexual Crimes, to 18 months in prison that morning. The court also ordered him to complete 40 hours of a sexual-violence treatment program, imposed a five-year employment restriction at institutions related to children and adolescents and persons with disabilities, and confiscated the seized evidence.
Mr. A was indicted for allegedly creating 1,141 deepfake sexually exploitative materials over six months beginning in November last year by synthesizing the faces of seven victims, including laboratory colleagues. Investigators also found records showing that he had searched for ways to bypass the safety measures of the generative artificial intelligence (AI) service Grok.
The court noted, "Given the circumstances and content of the crime, including repeatedly editing, synthesizing and processing images of the victims, who were students in the same university laboratory, the nature of the offense is poor and the defendant’s criminal responsibility is grave." It added, "He has not received forgiveness from the victims."
However, the court took into account as favorable factors that the defendant admitted his wrongdoing and was showing remorse, and that there were no circumstances clearly indicating that the edited and synthesized photos or videos had been distributed. It also considered that he had no prior record of punishment in South Korea and had deposited 7 million won for each victim with the court.
Earlier, Mr. A’s side asked for leniency, saying that he admitted all the charges and was remorseful. His lawyers emphasized that he had deposited a total of 49 million won, or 7 million won each for the seven victims, as compensation for emotional damages. They also argued that there was no evidence that the images he created had been sent to third parties or distributed through social networking services (SNS).
The victims, meanwhile, reported extreme fear and trauma and urged the court to punish Mr. A severely. Prosecutors had previously sought a three-year prison sentence, along with orders for the disclosure and notification of his personal information, restrictions on employment at institutions related to children, adolescents and persons with disabilities, and completion of a sexual-violence treatment program.
If the ruling becomes final, Mr. A will become subject to personal-information registration under the Act on Special Cases Concerning the Punishment of Sexual Crimes and will be required to submit the relevant information. However, the court did not order the disclosure or notification of his personal information, taking into consideration that the execution of the sentence, personal-information registration, employment restrictions and completion of a sexual-violence treatment program could help prevent recidivism to some extent.
[email protected] Seo Ji-yoon Reporter