Sawt Falasteen - AI porn victims see Hong Kong unprepared for threat

"At first I was shocked, then it turned into panic," said the 20-year-old, describing the ordeal as a "wound that will leave a scar".

C was one of three women who exposed an AI porn scandal at Hong Kong's oldest university last month, sparking huge debate around what had largely been seen as an overseas phenomenon.

The victims, who spoke to AFP on condition of anonymity, and experts said the city was ill-prepared to counter the fast-growing threat.

In the University of Hong Kong (HKU) case, hundreds of images of at least 20 women were discovered on the student's laptop.

"B", another of those who spoke out, said she felt betrayed as she had considered the perpetrator a friend.

"I felt like my privacy was violated... like I couldn't trust the people around me," she said.

The university's initial response was to give the student a warning letter and make him apologise.

The third woman, "A", said she was told by staff the case couldn't be heard before a disciplinary committee.

"They were concerned but didn't know what they could do... We felt that was a bit ridiculous."

HKU told AFP it "has been in contact with the students involved" but cannot comment further with the case under active review.

- Damage may 'never end' -

While the HKU case has thrust AI-made porn into the spotlight, it is not the city's first.

Janice, a woman in her late 20s who also asked to use a pseudonym, told AFP she was devastated a few years ago when fake obscene images were sent to her friends.

She never found the culprit and worried that the damage might "never end".

"I tried skipping work and didn't dare to go out on the street," she said, adding that she had suicidal thoughts and would suddenly burst into tears.

"I couldn't sleep because I was afraid I would wake up to see the whole internet filled with (pornographic) images of me."

Hong Kong's Association Concerning Sexual Violence Against Women received 11 similar requests for help in 2024-25.

"We have observed an uptick... Some cases may be hidden if (victims) don't know how to seek help," executive director Doris Chong said.

Janice doubted she had enough evidence to persuade police to help, adding that she felt society will "never find a way" to punish canny offenders.

- Type of 'sexual violence' -

An estimated 90 percent of AI-made porn victims are women, Susanne Choi from the Chinese University of Hong Kong told AFP, "suggesting that it is a form of gender-based sexual violence".

Asked for the number of recent cases involving deepfake pornography, police said they did not maintain such figures.

Lawmakers and universities need to "expand and revise existing laws and procedures to better cope with... technology-facilitated sexual harassment", Choi argued.

Discussions in Britain and Singapore show a growing willingness to penalise its creation, though opinion is split on possession, according to Hong Kong barrister Stephen Keung.

Hong Kong currently criminalises the distribution of "intimate images", including AI-made ones, but not their creation or possession.

That made legal action in the HKU case difficult as there was no evidence that the pictures were circulated.

After the women went public with the scandal, however, Hong Kong's privacy watchdog launched a criminal investigation, and the Equal Opportunities Commission is handling a related complaint.

- Dignity 'undermined' -

The three students said they have had to deal with public backlash.

Once an avid social media user, C temporarily stopped posting, worried about who else "would screengrab my photos for what purpose".

"Many commenters said... 'You are ruining the guy's future, you should apologise to him'," she said, saying she endured periods of self-doubt.

The student has not been named and AFP was unable to reach him for comment.

B said the trio did not want to "play judge" but believed offenders should face long-term consequences.

"The mere creation (of AI porn) is a problem... My bodily autonomy, my privacy, my dignity were undermined by it," B said.

"If a line must be drawn, it should be drawn at creation."

M.AlAhmad--SF-PST