Florida politician Sabrina Javellana attacked with porn deepfakes
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Occurred: February 2021
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Sabrina Javellana, a young Filipino-American politician in Florida, was assaulted with deepfaked pornographic images of her, causing severe psychological distress and dispruting her career.
What happened
What happened
Facial images of Sabrina Javellana were manipulated using AI technology to create highly explicit and derogatory pornographic content that was disseminated on 4chan and other web forums.
The doctored images were accompanied by misogynistic and harrassing comments, including ones that threatened sexual violence, causing Javellana severe emotional distress and paranoia, forcing her to withdraw from public events and suffer from isolation, and disrupting her plans to pursue a teaching career.
Despite her efforts to seek justice through law enforcement and legal channels, the existing laws proved inadequate to address the situation.
Why it happened
Why it happened
Javellana's political activism and progressive views arguably made her a target for harassment. Following her denunciation of police brutality and advocacy for social justice, she began receiving hostile messages, culminating in the deepfake incident.
The use of deepfakes has emerged as a troubling trend where malicious actors exploit AI and related technologies to harm individuals, notably women in public life.
The lack of comprehensive laws in the US addressing non-consensual deepfake pornography further exacerbated Javellana's vulnerability.
What it means
What it means
The case of Sabrina Javellana highlights the need for stronger legal protections against digital harassment and deepfake technologies.
Although Florida passed Senate Bill 1798 in 2022 to criminalise non-consensual deepfake images, the ongoing nature of Javellana's experience underscores the challenges victims face in seeking justice.
Additionally, new legislative efforts like the DEFIANCE Act aim to enhance protections for victims and hold perpetrators accountable.
Experts emphasise that technology companies must also play a proactive role in monitoring and removing harmful content to mitigate the risks associated with deepfakes.
Deepfake pornography
Deepfake pornography, or simply fake pornography, is a type of synthetic pornography that is created via altering already-existing photographs or video by applying deepfake technology to the images of the participants.
Source: Wikipedia 🔗
System 🤖
System 🤖
Unknown
Operator:
Developer:
Country: USA
Sector: Politics
Purpose: Damage reputation
Technology: Deepfake - image
Issue: Accountability; Ethics/values; Mis/disinformation; Privacy; Safety; Transparency
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News, commentary, analysis 🗞️
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Type: Incident
Published: January 2025
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