A South Korean law enforcement agency has launched a pre-indictment inquiry into Telegram Corporation for allegedly enabling “deepfake sexual crimes,” officials announced on Monday. Woo Jong-soo, head of the National Police Agency’s National Investigation Headquarters, revealed that the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency has initiated the investigation due to a significant increase in reported cases of such offenses.
From January to July 2024, there were 297 cases recorded, with a spike in the week of Aug. 26-29 to 88 cases. Despite the challenges of obtaining investigative materials from Telegram, Woo mentioned plans to collaborate with French authorities and international organizations to pursue the case.
Meanwhile, Telegram’s founder and CEO, Pavel Durov, was recently arrested in Paris by the French government on charges related to online sex crimes and drug trafficking. As of now, Telegram has not responded to the accusations.