Deepsukebe

Transparency and accountability 🙈

Deepsukebe has been deliberately designed to evade transparency and accountability.

• Ownership and management. It is unclear who is behind Deepsukebe, how its system works, and what impacts - direct and indirect - it has on those whose images are uploaded to and manipulated on its platform, and shared elsewhere.

• Partner programme. Deepsukebe launched a decentralised partner programme that makes its algorithm available to third parties via an API, and a referral programe that rewards users for sharing nude images created using the app. The former programme is apparently designed to avoid the service being taken offline, according to WIRED.

• Payment systems. Deepsukebe was initially hosted on Finnish host provider Ab Stract, and registered with UK-based domain registrar TLD Registrar Solutions, with Mastercard and Visa listed as approved payment suppliers on Deepsukebe's website. Under pressure, the service switched to offer cryptocurrency payments through Coinbase, despite the crypto exchange’s terms explicitly prohibiting illegal, obscene and abusive usage. Coinbase later severed its relationship with Deepsukebe. 

• Data use and storage. It is unclear what data Deepsukebe collects, how it uses data, or with whom data is shared. This lack of transparency raises serious privacy concerns and prevents meaningful user consent or control over their data.

• Media enquiries. Deepdsueke operators avoid direct contact or cooperation with journalists and investigators.

Risks and harms 🛑

Deepsukebe has caused controversy for exploiting legal gaps and grey areas and causing a wide variety of risks and harms to individuals and society.

• Psychological and emotional damage. Victims experience severe emotional distress and feelings of humiliation and disempowerment upon seeing nonconsensual sexually explicit deepfake images of themselves that often objectify and dehumanise them and women in general. These harms often lead to severe, long-lasting psychological trauma, broken relationships, and social exclusion and isolation.

• Loss of privacy. Deepsukebe has been criticised for significant violations of privacy.

• Sexual exploitation. DeepSukebe enables the creation of hyper-realistic sexual images and videos without consent, which are often used to exploit and abuse victims, mostly women and minors. 

• Financial blackmail. Deepfake images are used in financial sextortion schemes where victims, including minors, are coerced into paying to prevent the release of fabricated explicit images, intensifying victims' fear and isolation.

• Reputational damage. Deepfake images being indistinguishable from real ones can severely damage a victim's personal and professional reputation. This includes challenges in maintaining employment and social stigma.

Legal, regulatory 👩🏼‍⚖️

• PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA v SOL ECOM, INC., BRIVER LLC, ITAI TECH LTD., DEFIREX OÜ, ITAI OÜ, AUGUSTIN GRIBINETS, and DOES #1 through #50 (pdf)

News, commentary, analysis 🗞️

• https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/entry/deepfake-tool-nudify-women_n_6112d765e4b005ed49053822

• https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-9884487/Website-uses-deepfake-tech-undress-thousands-everyday-women-experts-anything.html

• https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/credit-card-giants-tied-deepfake-nudify-site-zjhzmrz3v

• https://www.wired.com/story/deepfake-nude-abuse/