Cara Hunter on the deepfake video that nearly ended her political career
10 days ago
- #women-in-politics
- #deepfake
- #online-safety
- Cara Hunter, an Irish politician, discovered she was a victim of deepfake pornography during her grandmother's 90th birthday in April 2022.
- The deepfake video was pornographic and falsely depicted Hunter, causing significant personal and professional distress.
- Hunter faced vitriolic messages from strangers and struggled with the lack of legal recourse at the time.
- Deepfake technology has since become more accessible, leading to increased incidents, particularly targeting young women.
- Legislation in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland is beginning to address deepfake intimate image abuse, but public awareness remains low.
- Hunter's political party advised her to ignore the incident to avoid further damage to her reputation during an election campaign.
- Despite the challenges, Hunter won her election by a narrow margin and later became an advocate for legislation against deepfake abuse.
- Hunter's experience highlights the broader issue of violence against women and the normalization of such abuses in society.
- The incident has had lasting psychological effects on Hunter, impacting her personal life and political career.
- Hunter continues to advocate for mandatory labeling of AI-generated content and stronger legal protections against deepfake abuse.