Australian teen allegedly creates & shares nude deepfakes of over 50 schoolgirls, gets arrested

A teenage boy was arrested in Victoria, Australia after he allegedly created and circulated artificial intelligence-generated explicit photos of about 50 schoolgirls.

The victims were students in years nine to 12 of Bacchus Marsh Grammar, a co-ed school on the outskirts of Melbourne.

This means the victims' ages ranged between 14 and 18.

The Guardian reported that the boy apparently took photos of the girls’ faces from social media and placed them on AI-generated nude bodies.

Behaviour 'needs to be dealt with in as firm a way as possible': Principal

Speaking to ABC, Andrew Neal, the principal of Bacchus Marsh Grammar, north-west of Melbourne, said the victims were receiving counselling and support.

"They should be able to learn and go about their business without this kind of nonsense," he said.

He also condemned the alleged culprit's actions, saying: "It's appalling. It is something that strikes to the heart of students, particularly girls growing up at this age."

It is not clear if the alleged culprit himself also studies in the same institution, although Neal was quoted as saying: "Logic would suggest that the most likely individual is someone at the school... or a group of people from the school, however, the police and the school are not ruling out any other possibility as well."

Boy was arrested

Sharing deepfake pornography is a criminal offense in Victoria, which is currently the only Australian state to criminalise the deed.

According to a report on Jun. 11 by ABC, Victoria police first learned of the situation on Jun. 7, when they were told a number of images were sent to a person in the Melton area via an online platform.

The teenage boy was arrested in relation to the incident, but later released "pending further inquiries", said Victoria police, who added that investigations were still ongoing.

It is unclear if the boy currently faces any charges.

According to legislation passed in 2022, using technology to generate or share child abuse material, or sexually explicit material without consent, is punishable with a three-year jail term.

Top photo via Bacchus Marsh Grammar/Facebook