A Harmless Prank or Synthetic Child Sexual Abuse Material?

A middle school in the U.S. state of Louisiana found itself the subject of national headlines in late 2025 after a student altercation broke out on a school bus. The impetus; deepfake pornography. Female students at Sixth Ward Middle School reported to an administrator that artificial intelligence (AI) generated sexually explicit images using their likenesses were being created and shared by a male peer. While the school began an initial inquiry into the images, one of the victims claimed she continued to face harassment in the hallways. When the 13-year-old boarded the bus after school to find her classmate openly sharing deepfake images of her friends, she struck him.

The Rise in Deepfake Pornography

The incident in Louisiana illustrates how the use of AI to create sexually explicit content of real individuals without their knowledge is on the rise. Non-consensual synthetic intimate imagery (NSII), colloquially referred to as deepfake pornography, is recognized by the United Nations as a form of image-based sexual abuse that disproportionately harms women and girls. AI generative models are now widely accessible such that users are relatively unencumbered by barriers beyond their own imaginations and internet connection.

Apps for Easy Image Generation

In January 2026 the Tech Transparency Project identified dozens of digital applications available on Apple’s App Store and the Google Play Store that market themselves as “nudify” technology. These tools are marketed as titillating novelty products, when in reality they utilize real photographs and videos to generate nude images. The democratization of generative AI has contributed to a sharp rise in NSII material online across social media platforms, messaging apps and private forums.

Legal Responses: The United States

Governments’ recognition of the harm posed by deepfake pornography has increased. In the United States, the TAKE IT DOWN ACT is the first federal statute concerning NSII. The Act federally prohibits the publication or threat of publication with full recognizance of any non-consensual intimate images. Relevant platforms are even required to implement an expungement process to remove NSII from their site within 48 hours. In cases where an adult is the subject of the image in question, the prosecution has to prove the intent to cause damage. The penalty for violation is a criminal fine and/or up to two years imprisonment. There is a lessened burden of proof in establishing criminal intent for cases involving minors and an additional year on the maximum prison sentencing.

Legal Responses: The United Kingdom

Legal reform in the United Kingdom looks different. The Online Safety Act 2023 and the Data (Use and Access) Act 2025 prohibit the distribution and creation of non-consensual images (synthetic or authentic), respectively. Individual penalties are in line with US sentencing, including the possibility of fines or two years imprisonment. The Online Safety Act has provisions that regulate digital platforms, such that companies can be held liable for failure to protect users or failure to cooperate with criminal investigations.

Legal Responses: South Korea

South Korea stands out as having developed a relatively robust legislative framework to deal with NSII early on. Deepfake pornography in South Korea has grown exponentially with levels of reporting. According to the Yonhap News Agency, cases have risen from  1,913 in 2021 to 3,574 in 2022, 7,187 in 2023 and a staggering 23,107 in 2024. Already in 2020, South Korea began regulating deepfake pornography with Article 14-2 of the Act on Special Cases Concerning the Punishment of Sexual Crimes. Stringent amendments were passed in 2024, specifically criminalizing the creation, possession and distribution of any audiovisual media that used “the face, body or voice of a person in a form that may cause sexual desire or shame against the will of the person who is subject to video”. Producing or disseminating NSII comes with a maximum 7-year prison labor sentence or a fine of 50 million won (roughly US$33,000). Possessing or watching NSII is punishable by imprisonment with labor for up to 3 years and/or a 30 million won fine (roughly US$20,000). Monetizing deepfake pornography can result in a maximum sentence of 3-years penal servitude.

Implementation and Enforcement Gaps in South Korea

Despite this comprehensive legislation, research on the South Korean case by Sou Hee Yang from Takasaki City University  reveals notable enforcement and policy implementation challenges, namely a lack of critical infrastructure to aid in detection, removal and victim-survivor management. According to Yang, the National Police Agency (NPA) lacks the technological apparatus needed to bypass the security of platforms and apps where deepfake pornography is being shared by offenders. Victim-survivor testimony also indicates that NSII abuse is being underreported. When attempting to file a formal complaint, police officers frequently discourage complainants unless they can directly identify their abuser(s), according to Yang. Given that digital abuse largely operates under the cloak of anonymity, this is seen as an unrealistic benchmark for justice.

Adolescents at a Critical Intersection

As digital natives, adolescents are typically the earliest adopters and settlers of technology  and the online space. Young people are at a heightened risk of victimization and perpetration of NSII abuse. In 2024, the South Korean NPA’s arrest data revealed that the majority of suspects arrested for deepfake pornography cases were adolescents, with under the age of criminal culpability released from custody and their cases reassigned to family court. 15 % of adolescents surveyed in the US and 13% in the UK reported that they were exposed or aware of deepfake pornography. 83% of US students concurred that NSII was just as damaging as authentic non-consensual intimate imagery (NCII). 55% of UK teens asserted that the creation and circulation of nude deepfake materials of themselves is worse than real nude image.

Multidimensional Consequences

After that fight broke out on the school bus in Louisiana, the girl was suspended from Sixth Ward Middle School pending an internal investigation. Weeks later, the accused boy was charged by the sheriff’s office with several counts of illegal dissemination of deepfake imagery. This story is an example of the far-reaching consequences of deepfake pornographic abuse. Non-consensual synthetic intimate imagery poses a unique issue for legal systems, educational institutions and online platforms.