The government and the ruling People Power Party have agreed to work toward a higher maximum penalty for deepfake sex crimes, aiming for seven years instead of the current five.

Following a government briefing Thursday that revealed an increase in sex crimes involving deepfake technology, party policy chief Kim Sang-hoon said the harsher penalty would match the current maximum for spycam crimes.

In view of recent issues with Telegram, a social media and instant messaging service provider that deepfake distributors often use to share illicit content, Kim said Seoul intends to establish a hotline to enhance communication with the platform’s administrators. 

Given that minors between the ages of ten and 14 are exempt from criminal prosecution, and many deepfake cases involve perpetrators within that age range, the two sides will look at lowering the age of criminal responsibility. 

The government and the ruling party also discussed setting up a deepfake sex crime reporting center on the education ministry’s website, and examined the need to provide victims with the necessary psychological and legal support.