A recent spate of blackmail incidents using “deepfake” photographs and videos to extort medical personnel and academics originated in China, the Taipei Police Department said yesterday, while the Ministry of Justice Bureau of Investigation (MJIB) reported an election-focused use of manipulated video.
Male medical personnel at Taipei City Hospital reported to police on July 19 that they had received e-mails containing black-and-white images of them in a bed embracing a woman.
The e-mail warned the recipient to keep a low profile and contact an individual through Line, or a video of them would be released, the police said.
Photo: Reuters
The Taipei Police Department’s Criminal Investigation Division said that the Internet protocol addresses associated with the e-mails and the Line chats originated from China and Hong Kong.
The investigation also showed that lecturers at National Tsing Hua University and National Cheng Kung University have also reported receiving similar e-mails threatening to publicize the photographs in March.
The police said they have forwarded the matter to prosecutors’ offices and are also launching a broader investigation into similar incidents.
Meanwhile, cybersecurity experts say the ready availability of candidates’ photos and videos combined with easy access to photo, video and voice-manipulation technology could pose a security risk if groups create and spread false photos and videos online ahead of January’s elections.
Prosecutor-General Hsing Tai-chao (邢泰釗) last week said that the Supreme Prosecutors’ Office has instructed district prosecutors’ offices across the nation to establish a task force to handle false information generated using artificial intelligence or deepfake technology.
The Ministry of Justice Bureau of Investigation yesterday said that a video clip recently circulated on social media allegedly featuring Vice President William Lai (賴清德), the Democratic Progressive Party’s presidential candidate, was altered with deepfake technology.
In the video, “Lai” says: “I must stress that regardless of the blue or white camps, they are all political parties representing mainstream public opinions.”
The bureau said it is still investigating the issue, adding that spreading or streaming clips, videos or sounds involving presidential candidates that have been altered by deepfake technology contravenes the Presidential and Vice Presidential Election and Recall Act (總統副總統選舉罷免法).
Members of the public should verify information before they share it online to avoid inadvertently contravening the law, it said.
NEW AGREEMENT: Malaysia approved imports last year after nearly two years of negotiations and inspections to meet quarantine requirements, officials said Up to 3.6 tonnes of pomeloes from Taiwan cleared Malaysian customs on Friday, in the first shipment of Taiwanese pomeloes to Malaysia. Taiwan-grown pomeloes are popular in domestic and overseas markets for their tender and juicy taste, the Ministry of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Agency said. The fruit is already exported to Japan, Canada, Hong Kong, Singapore and the Philippines, it added. The agency began applying for access to the Malaysian market in 2023, compiling data on climate suitability, pests and diseases, and post-harvest handling, while also engaging in nearly two years of negotiations with Malaysian authorities and submitting supplementary
PEAK MONTHS: Data showed that on average 25 to 27 typhoons formed in the Pacific and South China seas annually, with about four forming per month in July and October One of three tropical depressions in the Pacific strengthened into a typhoon yesterday afternoon, while two others are expected to become typhoons by today, Central Weather Administration (CWA) forecaster Lee Ming-hsiang (李名翔) said yesterday. The outer circulation of Tropical Depression No. 20, now Typhoon Mitag, has brought light rain to Hualien, Taitung and areas in the south, Lee said, adding that as of 2pm yesterday, Mitag was moving west-northwest at 16kph, but is not expected to directly affect Taiwan. It was possible that Tropical Depression No. 21 would become a typhoon as soon as last night, he said. It was moving in a
Tigerair Taiwan and China Airlines (CAL) today announced that several international flights were canceled or rescheduled due to Typhoon Ragasa. The Central Weather Administration (CWA) has maintained sea and land warnings for the typhoon. Its storm circle reached the Hengchun Peninsula (恆春半島) on Taiwan's southern tip at 11am today. Tigerair Taiwan said it canceled Monday's IT551/IT552 Taoyuan-Da Nang, IT606/IT607 Taoyuan-Busan and IT602 Taoyuan-Seoul Incheon flights. Tomorrow, cancelations include IT603 Seoul Incheon-Taoyuan, as well as flights between Taoyuan and Sapporo, Osaka, Tokyo Narita, Okinawa, Fukuoka, Saga, Tokyo Haneda, Nagoya, Asahikawa and Jeju. On Wednesday, the IT321/IT322 Kaohsiung-Macau round-trip would also be canceled. CAL announced that today's
Three tropical depressions yesterday intensified into tropical storms, with one likely to affect Taiwan as a typhoon, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. The three storms, named Mitag, Ragasa and Neoguri, were designated as storms No. 17 to 19 for this year, the CWA said. Projected routes indicate that Ragasa is most likely to affect Taiwan, it said. As of 2am today, Ragasa was 1,370km east-southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻) on the southernmost tip of Taiwan. It was moving west-northwest before turning northwest, slowing from 11kph to 6kph, the agency said. A sea warning for Ragasa is unlikely before Sunday afternoon, but its outer rim