HYBE Helps Korean Police Arrest Eight People on Suspicion of Targeting Artists With Deepfake Content

HYBE is continuing to work to protect its artists.

Korea’s Northern Gyeonggi Provincial Police Agency (NGPPA) worked with the global entertainment company to arrest eight individuals who are suspected of creating and distributing deepfake videos of HYBE Music Group artists, Billboard can confirm. Deepfakes are false images, videos or audio that have been edited or generated using artificial intelligence.

The investigation was launched as a result of a Memorandums of Understanding between HYBE and NGPPA, signed in February 2024, as a means to combat cybercrimes for their artists and maintain their safety. HYBE provided information to NGPPA, who were able to track down and identify the suspects. Additionally, fans helped the investigation by sending reports via the HYBE Artist Rights Violation Report Center tip line.

“HYBE will respond firmly to crimes that infringe on our artists’ portrait rights and reputations, based on a zero-tolerance and no-settlement policy,” Jason Jaesang Lee, CEO of HYBE, said in a press statement, adding, “We will continue to monitor and take legal action to eradicate such serious crimes.”

Ho-seung Kim, district chief of NGPPA, also assured that deepfake suspects will continue to be tracked down. “Deepfake crimes that exploit the vulnerabilities of celebrities—who often find it difficult to report such offenses themselves — are on the rise,” he said in his statement. “Deepfake is a serious type of crime that can destroy the daily lives of victims, and crimes targeting public figures are no exception.”

At press time, HYBE has not released names of suspects or which of its artists were affected.