Bomb under deepfake site: 15 celebrities report, block in UK and dozens of videos removed

Dutch authorities have struck an important blow against the website that has been distributing deepfake porn videos of celebrities for years, unhindered and with impunity. In recent weeks, dozens of videos of celebrities and MPs have been taken offline after investigation A.D. Some videos, for example of the members of the Royal House, had been online for years and were viewed more than 100,000 times.

It A.D revealed in March that between seventy and eighty well-known Dutch women have fallen victim to deepfake porn videos. These videos have been manipulated with the help of artificial intelligence, with their faces pasted onto the body of a porn actress. A total of fifteen of them actually filed a report, the Public Prosecution Service confirms.

This means that one in five Dutch celebrities has gone to the police after revelations from this site. Among them are Caroline van der Plas (BBB), Mirjam Bikker (CU) and CDA MP Eline Vedder. “The advice to keep quiet about it makes me furious. Far too often, victims have to remain silent about what is done to them, including me. No more!” said Vedder. Victims say they have not yet heard anything from the Public Prosecution Service, but they are pleased that most images on Platform S. have been taken offline.

The Public Prosecution Service must more actively track down makers of deepfake porn

Agree, this is an online sexual crime (94%)
Disagree, the people in the videos are not real (4%)
I find this difficult (leave a response in comments) (2%)

Platform S. in danger

Other victims who did not go to the police, including program makers, artists and Olympic athletes, tried to take the videos offline through other (legal) routes. This can be done, for example, through a private investigation agency or through the supervisory authority, the Dutch Data Protection Authority. They can order uploaders to take the videos offline by imposing a fine.

This has worked for most, but not for all. There are still videos online of actresses and presenters of NOS, RTL and SBS6. There are also (much smaller) channels that offer deepfakes. It is striking that all images of MPs can no longer be found on Platform S. And that – especially important for victims – not a single video of a celebrity has appeared online since the national outcry. This indicates that the uploaders simply no longer dare to produce explicit videos because of all the attention.

‘Every action is crucial’

Addressing these crimes quickly shows that we take the impact seriously, says Dave Maasland, CEO of cybersecurity company Eset. “Every action in this regard is crucial for the safety of young women and sends the message that they matter. These kinds of small successes create momentum for the subject, political attention, social attention and encourage us to go further. Everything we do now to contain it will save enormous suffering in the future.”

Due to the increasing pressure from (investigative) authorities, Platform S.’s right to exist is seriously endangered. The website, which attracts millions of visitors every month, took a drastic measure this week to block all visitors from England, after the government there decided to punish the creation of sexual deepfakes with a prison sentence and a criminal record. “You should all use a VPN connection,” a senior member of the criminal gang advises on the forum. Furthermore, it is recommended to only use encrypted mail and to only pay for videos with crypto coins.

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British visitors receive an error message at Platform S. © Platform S

Cat in a corner

The criminal gang behind Platform S., consisting of leaders from Russia, feels like a cat in a corner. Registering on the forum is no longer possible. Internally there is a warning not to talk to journalists. It A.D and cyber experts have now been banned from the platform. There no longer seems to be a vibrant community. Earlier this month, the site was down for almost 24 hours after a Norwegian hosting party ended the partnership, following questions from it A.D. The website is now hiding behind hosting company Virtual Systems in Kiev. This party does not want to respond despite repeated calls.

In the Netherlands, creating and distributing sexual deepfakes without consent is already a punishable offense. Just making it can lead to up to a year in prison. Further distribution is allowed for two years. The Public Prosecution Service and the Dutch Data Protection Authority (AP) do not want to say in a response whether they have had images of celebrities taken offline. “That is confidential,” said the AP, which does speak of ‘good news’. The Public Prosecution Service says that if the identity of the uploaders can be determined, they will certainly be prosecuted.

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Tracks to Canada

Stichting Brein, online abuse expertise center Offlimits and various political parties believe that Platform S. should be shut down completely and point the finger at internet providers. These in turn point to the European Commission, and the EC in turn points to the Netherlands Authority for Consumers and Markets (ACM).

In the meantime, the search for the owner of Platform S. continues. There are currently tracks leading to Canada. The Public Prosecution Service does not want to comment on ‘possible ongoing investigations’.

*Platform S. is not dThe correct name of the mentioned deepfake website. This was deliberately done to protect the victims.

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