New York seized 12 celebrity deepfake sites that targeted about 1,200 people
Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg said his office seized 12 websites hosting AI-generated non-consensual sexual imagery and counted likenesses of about 1,200 people. WIRED independently reported the same 12-site, 1,200-victim tally and tied the takedown to the US Take It Down Act. Bragg called it the largest seizure of its kind and declined to say whether images of minors were on the sites.
Artificial Intelligence··Evening
Twelve sites, about 1,200 likenesses
At a Monday press conference, Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg said investigators seized 12 websites that hosted AI-generated non-consensual sexual imagery. His office counted likenesses of about 1,200 people among the depictions, including politicians, first ladies of several countries, actors, athletes, musicians and advocates. Bragg called the action the largest seizure of its kind. New York has criminalized sexually explicit deepfakes since 2023. He declined to say whether images of minors were on the sites, saying the investigation is ongoing.[1], [2]
WIRED matches the tally and names Take It Down
WIRED's 14 September report says the Manhattan District Attorney's Office seized 12 sites that collectively targeted around 1,200 victims. It places the seizure under the US Take It Down Act, which the story says lets law-enforcement officials take down and seize websites hosting non-consensual sexual imagery. Bragg, in a statement quoted by WIRED, said the sites targeted victims' mental well-being and urged people who think they were depicted to contact the office's cybercrime bureau. The same report says investigations into who ran the websites continue.[2]
What still sits with investigators
Neither report names the operators of the 12 sites or says prosecutions have been filed. Both leave open whether any of the seized material depicted children; Bragg would not answer that question while the investigation continues. The two reports agree on the 12-site seizure and the roughly 1,200-person count. They do not say how many of those likenesses were generated versus scraped, or how long the sites had been online before the takedown.[1], [2]
