First NZ sentencing for creating, sharing deepfake porn images - 1News
A 21-year-old man in New Zealand was sentenced for creating and sharing deepfake pornographic images of four young women, marking the country's first such prosecution.
- Incident date
- Jun 2024
- Target
- Summer Murphy
In a landmark case, a 21-year-old man has been sentenced for creating and sharing deepfake pornographic images, marking New Zealand's first prosecution of its kind. The case highlights the devastating impact of digitally manipulated images on victims and the challenges of proving harmful intent in such crimes.
What happened
Between June and October 2024, the man, then 19, took photos from four young women's social media accounts and manipulated them to create explicit images. He then shared these images widely online, including to the victims' friends and family. One of the victims, Summer Murphy, had hundreds of her photos manipulated using apps to seemingly remove her clothing. The manipulated images showed her in various scenarios, including on holiday with her family, altered to include the offender naked. The images were also posted on an international pornography site, attached to Summer's name. The man was charged under the Harmful Digital Communications Act, 2015, with intent to cause harm by creating and posting digital images. He received 24 months' intensive supervision, with reparations to be determined.