The internet can be an unpredictable place, often blurring the line between consent and violation. One particularly alarming form of deep fake pornography involves artificial intelligence superimposing someone’s face onto videos or images depicting others performing sexual acts; an example being female streamer Pokimane who used deep fake pornography to exploit vulnerable people and degrade their dignity.
Pokimane is one of many streamers targeted by this form of abuse. Recently, Atrioc released an emotional apology alongside his wife to address his use of Ceartas to access and view deepfake pornographic material featuring Pokemane and Maya Higa; according to him this was out of “morbid curiosity”, not something he does regularly.
Atrioc announced in his apology video that he has been diligently working to help women who have been victimized by such behavior, raising $60,000 for a law firm to assist streamers such as QTCinderella and SweetAnita fight back against any nonconsensual pictures that have been spread online without their permission.
While Atrioc and Pokimane’s public apologies are welcome, we must remember this is an ongoing issue and strengthen digital security accordingly to prevent abuses like these. As technology develops further, personal boundaries continue to be violated so it’s imperative that we work toward better protections.