[Interview] Yoon Tae-sun, Representative of Digital Human Rights

Relief for Illegally Filmed Content and Deepfake Victims... Leading the Fight Against Cross-Border Illegal Distribution Lack of Institutional Mechanisms to Counter Evolving Crimes International Project with Institute for Interreligious Dialogue Plans for International Network & Cooperation with Regulatory Bodies Concerns Over Youth-Related Composite Photos and Body Phishing Creating Prevention Guidebooks for Parents and Teachers

[Jungbu Maeil Reporter Kim Mi-na] Digital Human Rights (CEO Yoon, Tae-seon), a digital human rights monitoring organization based in Cheongju, recently joined forces with the Institute for Interreligious Dialogue (Instituto del Diálogo Interreligioso), a prestigious South American organization led by Father Guillermo Marcó, to launch the global project ‘My Image, My Consent’ aimed at eradicating digital sexual crimes. The Institute for Interreligious Dialogue is a religious harmony organization actively

supported by Pope Francis, who passed away in April. As Deepfake crime emerges as a serious social problem threatening individual lives, we met with CEO Yoon to hear about the reality of digital crime and potential countermeasures. / Editor

Digital Human Rights is a non-profit organization officially launched in May of last year. CEO Yoon, Tae-seon (49) introduced the organization as a place that "provides relief for victims of non-consensual video sharing." He emphasized, "We want to play a role in correcting the imbalances arising from technological advancement and protecting human dignity."

Deepfake is an AI technology that synthesizes faces or voices, originally a tool for content creation. However, when misused for crime, it can lead to unrestricted dissemination of celebrity composite videos and even ordinary people's everyday photos, posing a risk of uncontrolled spread across the globe.

While crimes are becoming increasingly sophisticated and legal/institutional mechanisms are catching up, the reality is that the response is still inadequate.

Digital Human Rights operates in the private sector to assist victims by supporting the deletion of illegally filmed content and Deepfake videos spread online.

CEO Yoon asserted, "Even though state institutions do their best, when a person is victimized, dozens or hundreds of videos can be scattered across unexpected places worldwide. It's difficult for the state alone to manage, so private assistance is necessary."

A graduate of Cheongju Cheongseok High School and Korea University's philosophy department, CEO Yoon followed in the footsteps of his late father, Yoon Seok-yong, the founder of Jusung University (now Chungbuk Health and Science University), taking on university administrative duties. He served as the head of the Beijing office, in charge of attracting foreign students, before leaving the university in the mid-2000s. While studying evidence law in the United States, he became aware of the "era of digital evidence." However, the reality he encountered in Korea was a scene of victim distress far more desperate than anticipated.

The despair of victims he met during his activities changed his life.

One woman, who had appeared on a YouTube channel, had her interview video manipulated into a sexual act and disseminated on overseas pornography sites. After seeking help from state agencies and private companies, she reached out to CEO Yoon. He spent several months working against a 'bulletproof server' in the Netherlands and successfully achieved the deletion.

However, what remained in CEO Yoon’s memory was not the technical success but the victim's despair.

"The victim would occasionally call me at dawn, appealing that she wanted to die and felt everyone saw her in that way," CEO Yoon recalled. "That's when I realized. It’s not just about deleting the videos; prioritizing the protection of their mental well-being is essential."

CEO Yoon’s personal background also plays a role in this commitment. He faced a huge void in his life when his father passed away due to suicide. CEO Yoon stressed, "Because I experienced life collapsing, the victims' despair never sounds like someone else's problem. Authenticity is the most important thing."

Through the international project initiated with the Institute for Interreligious Dialogue, he plans to counter cross-border illegal dissemination and build a network of hub countries to cooperate directly with regulatory bodies in each nation.

His future goals are also clear. Expressing concern over "composite photos" and "body phishing" that could spread among teenagers, he has begun producing a prevention guidebook for parents and and teachers.

CEO Yoon concluded, "Technology doesn't stop. The important issue is how to protect the people who are hurt by it. Even if it takes 10 or 20 years, helping victims return to their daily lives is our calling."