CYBER criminals are selling deepfake revenge porn on the dark web for up to $15,800 for a minute-long video, an investigation has revealed.
Recent advancements in artificial intelligence (AI) technology have made this disturbing scheme much easier to execute.
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AI-powered systems like Stable Diffusion or Midjourney, which translate text prompts into pictures, can be used to create stunning images.
But these image generators can also be used to create pornographic pictures that can look hyper-realistic.
Face-swapping technology can digitally manipulate pornography to make it look like other people are present in the images or film.
The creation of pornographic deepfakes for revenge can fetch between $300 (£240) to $20,000 (£15,870) per minute, according to cybersecurity giant Kaspersky.
Kaspersky’s investigation found that the risk of falling victim to deepfakes is “ever-increasing”, as the popularity of social media selfies has made it easier for fraudsters to extract images of their potential victims.
These videos can then be used as revenge and various other malicious purposes, such as blackmail, financial fraud and harassment.
There is significant demand for deepfakes on the dark web – so much so that it currently surpasses the supply, the investigation revealed.
There are efforts to squash this dark web scheme, however.
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The UK government announced last year that it is seeking to outlaw AI-generated deepfake porn as part of its Online Safety Bill.
The Law Commission has been campaigning for several years to extend the criminal laws on creating and sharing intimate images without consent to include altered intimate images, such as deepfakes.
A growing number of UK lawmakers and campaign groups have been calling for a ban on the use of AI to nudify women since it became clear technology was being abused.
The government said in November that there are growing global concerns about technology being used to create fake pornographic images and video.
One unnamed website which creates nude images from clothed ones receiving 38million visits last year, the government noted at the time.
“The fact that there is a high demand for deepfake creation services also indicates that individuals and groups with malicious intent are willing to pay significant amounts of money to acquire such videos,” says Vladislav Tushkanov, Lead Data Scientist at Kaspersky.
“As the technology continues to improve and become more accessible, it is crucial that companies and individuals take steps to protect themselves from deepfake-related scamsand attacks.”
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