“Artists face increased vulnerability to online crimes due to the rapid creation of deepfake videos”: K-Pop mega-label HYBE goes legal to stop the flood of fakes

To some it may seem ironic that the world’s number one purveyors of manufactured music are speaking out against AI rather than simply ‘getting with the program’. But this is no battle against manufactured music. This is a new war against the wholesale reappropriation of carefully cultivated artists' likenesses for publication in scandalous and ever more realistic deepfakes.

And, rather than simply step back and let its artists weather their personal storms, HYBE – one of K-Pop’s biggest labels and the home to artists such as BTS and LE SSERAFIM – is stepping up and stepping in to stem the flood.

They’ve issued a Memorandum of Understanding which sees HYBE joining forces with Korea’s Northern Gyeonggi Provincial Police Agency – the country’s leading cybercrime unit – to share information and combat the rise of deepfakes and associated cybercrimes.

The move comes following similar measures by other K-Pop entities such as JYP Entertainment, YG Entertainment, and Cube Entertainment who've likewise spoken out.

Fake video – real damage

The issue of deepfakes and cybercrime is particularly prominent in K-Pop’s South Korean homeland, with their stars of music and screen being prime targets for deepfakery.

According to Consequence.net, US cybersecurity company Security Hero estimated that K-pop stars are especially at risk with a 2023 study showing that 53% of the individuals featured in deepfake pornography were South Korean singers or actresses.

“Artists face increased vulnerability to online crimes due to the rapid creation and distribution of deepfake videos,” read’s HYBE’s release. “The memorandum includes swift action against offenders, including expedited arrests and the launch of a dedicated hotline for reporting such crimes in Korea, strengthening overall efforts to protect artists from online exploitation.”

HYBE already has channels open allowing fans of their artists to communicate and report the circulation of potentially damaging content. Their new measures will see the company sharing this data with the authorities to more accurately locate perpetrators and speed up measures against them.

An international problem

And it seems that the rest of the world will soon be following suit.

In July 2024, Hollywood law firm Venable LLP – whose clients include Taylor Swift – launched Takedown, a new service specifically dedicated to targeting and removing deepfake content.

A bipartisan bill, titled NO FAKES (Nurture Art, Foster Art, Keep Entertainment Safe) was introduced to the US Senate in 2024 with the aim of protecting “the voice and visual likeness of all individuals from unauthorized computer-generated recreations from generative artificial intelligence (AI) and other technologies.”

It’s reassuring that with the advent of AI that, rather than bypass the artist completely and embrace new tech that could eliminate a human element that’s prone to fallout and burnout, K-Pop is investing time and effort into supporting its teams of artists and the production talent around them.

And with HYBE artists proving to be a huge breakout global success for what was once a local niche, you can’t blame them for wanting to prevent their plans from being in any way upset.

Indeed, HYBE only last week announced a deal with OneRepublic’s Ryan Tedder to launch a new boyband with HYBE chairman Bang Si-hyuk and HYBE America CEO Scooter Braun holding the reins.

Of course, there have always been fakes and subsequent scandals but in the current age with increasingly powerful AI falling into the hands of an increasing number of people it is perhaps inevitable that the number of bad actors and the volume and ‘quality’ of their output was only ever going to increase.

How effective the group’s actions and any resultant new laws and measures may be, remains to be seen.