Seoul: The government announced its intention to enhance regulations on both domestic and international platform operators, including Telegram, as part of a comprehensive strategy to eliminate deepfake-related sexual crimes. According to Yonhap News Agency, the plan mandates that the online messaging app Telegram appoint an agent to represent the company in South Korea. Additionally, Telegram will be required to implement measures to protect children from sexually exploitative and harmful materials present on its platform. Other platform operators, such as internet portal operator Naver and Meta, which owns Instagram and Facebook, will also be obligated to develop strategies to address the distribution of such materials on their platforms. The Korea Communications Commission will have the authority to impose fines on companies that violate these requirements. This regulatory move follows a series of pornography incidents targeting young women on Telegram that led to public outrage earlier this year. Report s indicate that the number of deepfake sex crime cases reported to the police has surged more than fourfold to 964 cases so far this year, compared to 180 cases in the entire year of 2023. The government also plans to bolster its collaboration with global platform companies to facilitate the removal of illegal content and assist in the investigation of such cases. In September, a hotline was established between South Korea's media regulator and the police with Telegram. The initiative also includes provisions for platforms hosting deepfake materials to proactively block images and videos before seeking a review by the state media regulator.