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“If Taylor Swift is not immune from this, certainly British Columbians are not.” — Premier David Eby responding to news that the pop star has been the victim of “deep fake” nude images spread online
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As the AI-generated nude photos of Taylor Swift gave an international platform to the problem of online sextortion, a new B.C. law that came into force Monday gives victims more power to have non-consensual intimate images scrubbed from the internet.
AI-generated photos purporting to show the famous singer-songwriter in sexually suggestive positions were viewed tens of millions of times on X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter, before being taken down.
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“If Taylor Swift is not immune from this, certainly British Columbians are not,” said Premier David Eby, speaking to reporters from Ottawa.
“The troubling developments over the weekend in relation to one of the most popular pop stars that has ever lived and recognizing that even someone with the wealth and authority and power that she has, that this could happen, is a call for all governments and tech companies to have a look at the laws and the frameworks and the safeguards that they have in place.”
One Victoria-based online security expert said artificial intelligence is increasingly being used by online predators to extort victims out of money and he praised B.C.’s legislation for keeping up with technology.
“Taylor Swift and her notoriety around the world has really shone a light on this issue, to bring it to the attention of parents and adults who can become a target for this type of crime,” said Darren Laur, a former Victoria police officer and online security consultant who advised the attorney general’s ministry as the law was being drafted.
The Intimate Images Protection Act provides expedited options for victims to get orders that images be taken down and destroyed. It will allow victims to claim compensation from people who posted the photos without permission.
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For example, B.C.’s civil resolution tribunal has expanded its online portal to give people information on their rights and self-help tools to begin remedial action, as well as connect them to community and mental-health supports.
The tribunal also now has the power to order a person, social media company or website to stop distribution and remove an intimate image from its platform. These applications can be made without notice and without naming a respondent.
Laur said his company, The White Hatter, has helped 300 teens and 12 adults across Canada who have been victims of sextortion. In two of those cases, including one in B.C., those cases involved AI-generated “deep fake” nude images.
Laur’s team tested out an AI app that takes someone’s image and manipulates the photo so it appears the person is naked. Even though it’s not the person’s actual body, the deep fake nude can be used to extort them.
“It’s scary what (the app) can do,” he said. “The new Intimate Images Protection Act that we have here in the province, it’s the only legislation in Canada that deals with this issue.”
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Laur acknowledged it’s more challenging to go after someone who is unknown to the victim or who lives outside Canada. However, he said most of the cases he investigated involved someone known to the victim.
Eby said the B.C. NDP government started working on the legislation last spring but the deep fake image of Taylor Swift “really raises the profile of it for many people.”
kderosa@postmedia.com
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