Jamaine Punzalan

Actress Angel Aquino, January 28, 2025. Alec Corpuz, ABS-CBN News/File

Article (news)

Victoria Tulad

ABS-CBN News

MANILA -- Actress Angel Aquino and content creator Queen Hera denounced Thursday the use of deepfakes to violate the rights when they attended the hearing of the Senate Committee on Women, Children, Family Relations and Gender Equality.The panel delved into the use of artificial intelligence to proliferate deepfake pornography.Aquino said was informed by a friend that her face was used in a porn video.“I think any one of us, kung makita natin yung mukha natin na nasa isang porn video, I don&#x27;t know how you&#x27;d feel, but it&#x27;s really nakakabastos,” Aquino said. “When I learned of my deepfake, my reaction was both internal and physical. As in, para kong nasusuka. I felt ill, nauseated, confused, and stunned in the beginning. Then, it was disgust and anger for being violated as a person in a revolting and humiliating way.”“I understand that being public property, you know, is one of the trade-offs of this job,” she added. “Pero sana naman, only up to a certain extent, di ba? Putting ourselves out there doesn&#x27;t give people consent to demean us, defame us, harass, or take us apart, or do whatever they want to do with us.”  Queen Hera recounted how her daughter’s photo was maliciously used.“May nag-DM sa akin sa Instagram saying na yung anak ko ay nakita sa isang dark web. And nakita ko mismo yung picture niya,” she said. “Naka-edit yung mukha niya sa isang private part ng isang lalaki.”“As a mother, sobrang heartbreaking noon para sa akin. So, I felt helpless at that time, and knowing na parang wala nang safe, kahit sa online, kahit sobrang inosente ng post mo, hindi ligtas yun sa mga taong nakakapanood,” Queen Hera continued.She said she filed a complaint, but the Philippine National Police (PNP) admitted it was hard to trace the perpetrators.<div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/technology/2025/7/17/ai-powered-nudify-apps-fuel-deadly-wave-of-digital-blackmail-1100">AI-powered &#x27;nudify&#x27; apps fuel deadly wave of digital blackmail</a></div>Aquino appealed for the country’s laws to catch to the possible catastrophic effects of deepfake. “These deepfake photos and videos hurt and violate real people. I urge you all to take action. Punish the perpetrators, those who share and repost, the websites that host it, the platforms that turn a blind eye while it spreads. Those who make money out of this, accountability must be total because the damage multiplies with every click, every share, every view,” Aquino said.Committee Chair Senator Risa Hontiveros urged the government to act swiftly.She cited a report which said 95 percent of deepfakes are pornography and 90 percent of victims are women and children. She emphasized that even young boys are vulnerable to deepfakes.Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) Undersecretary Sarah Sison cited the Security Hero’s 2023 State of Deepfakes study, which said that deepfake videos increased by 550 percent since 2019.<div> </div><div>GOVERNMENT, PRIVATE SECTOR ACTIONS</div><div> </div>DICT said it was implementing various ways to strengthen digital defenses such as launching a unified dashboard system in July for real-time monitoring of illegal sites.DICT also implements a 24-hour takedown protocol of illegal sites, and directly engages with platforms such as Meta for content moderation.The Cybercrime Investigation and Coordinating Center (CICC) is leading the National Deepfake Task Force.CICC Acting Executive Director Renato Paraiso encouraged the public to call their hotline 1326 to report all online harms. Senator Sherwin Gatchalian pointed out the need to monitor the dark web, but Paraiso said they did not have the budget for 24/7 monitoring.Gatchalian said they could “pinch” a little from the flood control budget to protect children.The PNP, meanwhile, said it was procuring AI detection tools, aside from having a unit that conducts cyber patrol.Representatives from platforms Tiktok and Google assured the committee that they were employing various means to keep their communities safe.Tiktok, for example, prohibits content that includes nudity and sexual abuse. Google has announced a new tool for users to control whether they want to see or send images that may contain nudity.Telecommunications companies also laid out their protocols such as blocking certain websites.

Actress Angel Aquino and content creator Queen Hera denounced the use of deepfakes to violate the rights of people when they attended the hearing of the Senate Committee on Women, Children, Family Relations and Gender Equality.

Actress Angel Aquino and content creator Queen Hera denounced the use of deepfakes to violate the rights of people when they attended the hearing of the Senate Committee on Women, Children, Family Relations and Gender Equality.

Actress Angel Aquino calls for stronger laws after falling victim to deepfake

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Actress Angel Aquino calls for stronger laws after falling victim to deepfake

Victoria Tulad,

ABS-CBN News

Published Sep 04, 2025 05:18 PM PHT

Read More:

deepfake

pornography

Angel Aquino

Queen Hera

DICT

artificial intelligence

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