Manhattan DA Seizes 12 Deepfake Sites Targeting 1,200 Victims
Updated
Updated · WIRED · Sep 14
Manhattan DA Seizes 12 Deepfake Sites Targeting 1,200 Victims
1 articles · Updated · WIRED · Sep 14
Summary
Twelve domains hosting nonconsensual celebrity deepfake pornography were seized under a New York State Supreme Court warrant, in what officials described as one of the broadest crackdowns on explicit deepfake sites to date.
About 1,200 people—mostly women, including celebrities, politicians and influencers—were depicted in sexualized fake videos that prosecutors say were unlawfully shared, published and sold.
Several sites had already switched to “THIS DOMAIN HAS BEEN SEIZED” notices late last week, and researchers said the domains appeared inaccessible even through VPNs, suggesting a technically effective takedown.
Investigators are still pursuing the operators and uploaders behind the sites, which had likely drawn millions of views and in some cases reposted material linked to the now-defunct MrDeepFakes platform.
The action highlights growing use of new US and state tools against synthetic nonconsensual intimate imagery, though researchers say enforcement must also hit creation tools, hosting infrastructure and payment networks.