Sextortion: the FBI warns about the use of deepfakes

On June 5, 2023, the FBI issued a security advisory on an increase in sextortion using pornographic deepfakes. « Since April 2023, the FBI has observed an increase in the number of sextortion victims reporting the use of fake images or videos created from content posted on their social media profiles or on the web, provided to the malicious actor upon request, or captured during video chats, » reads the release.

The ability to generate images by AI (photos and videos) has become widely democratized, including for the creation of illegal deepfakes. Numerous tools of this kind are available free of charge on GitHub. On cybercrime forums, for example, there are ads offering to « turn any photo into a porn image”.

These fake, realistic pornographic images can be used to harass or blackmail people, especially children. The perpetrator can publish the images directly on various websites, or send them to people close to the victim, in order to destroy the victim’s reputation.

In sextortion cases, the FBI distinguishes between two types of blackmail. The perpetrator may demand « either payment (e.g., money, gift cards) with the threat of sharing the images or videos with family members or friends on social media (…); or that the victim sends real images or videos of a sexual nature ».

The FBI advises caution when publishing, distributing or sending photo or video files, « especially when children are involved”.