SEOUL, Aug 30 (Reuters) - South Korean regulators and

police this week vowed to combat sexually exploitative

deepfakes, urging Telegram and other social media companies to

cooperate with them as they crack down on the practice.

WHAT HAS CAUSED THE RECENT UPROAR IN SOUTH KOREA?

Several domestic media outlets reported recently that

sexually explicit deepfake images and videos of South Korean

women were often found in Telegram chatrooms.

Around the same time, South Korean feminist groups and

international K-pop fans became more active on social media,

calling for action and sharing tips on how to expose such

chatrooms.

The outcry also follows the sentencing this month of a man

for his involvement in a deepfake pornography case that targeted

female students at Seoul National University.

Gender issues are particularly sensitive in South Korea and

are debated fiercely across many public forums.

ARE SEXUAL DEEPFAKES MORE PREVALENT IN SOUTH KOREA?

South Korea is the country most targeted by deepfake

pornography, with its singers and actresses constituting 53% of

the individuals featured in such deepfakes, according to a 2023

report on deepfakes globally by Security Hero, a U.S. startup

focused on identity theft protection.

South Korean police say the number of deepfake sex crime

cases they have taken on so far this year has surged to 297.

That compares to 156 for all of 2021 when data was first

collated. Most victims and perpetrators are teenagers, they say.

South Korea has also had to grapple with a series of

high-profile digital sex crime cases in recent years, ranging

from an online sex blackmail ring to spycam porn.

WHAT ARE AUTHORITIES DOING?

The crackdown on sexual deepfakes by South Korea has

coincided with Pavel Durov, Telegram's Russian-born founder,

being put under formal investigation in France this week as

authorities there probe organized crime on the messaging app.

In addition to urging social media firms to more actively

cooperate with the deleting and blocking of such content, South

Korea's media regulator has asked French authorities for regular

cooperation in Telegram-related problems and facilitating direct

communication with Telegram.

Additionally, the South Korean government said on Friday it

will push for tougher laws to make the purchase or viewing of

sexually exploitative deepfakes a criminal act.

South Korean police are planning a seven-month push to crack

down on digital sex crimes. The number of regulatory personnel

monitoring such matters will be boosted and a 24-hour hotline

for victims will be established.

HOW ARE SOCIAL MEDIA COMPANIES RESPONDING?

Telegram has said in a statement to Reuters it actively

moderates harmful content on its platform including illegal

pornography.

YouTube this week demonetized a channel with more than one

million subscribers owned by a right-wing South Korean YouTuber

and removed one of his videos after he downplayed the

seriousness of deepfake crimes and mocked women for expressing

concern.

It cited violations of the platform's harassment policies

and said it was "committed to eradicating digital sex crimes on

our platform."