Man who posted deepfake images of prominent Australian women could face $450,000 penalty
The online safety regulator wants a $450,000 maximum penalty imposed on a man who posted deepfake images of prominent Australian women to a website, in the first case of its kind heard in an Australian court.
The eSafety commissioner has launched proceedings against Anthony Rotondo over his failure to remove 'intimate images' of several prominent Australian women from a deepfake pornography website.
The federal court has kept the names of the women confidential.
Rotondo initially refused to comply with the order while he was based in the Philippines, the court heard, but the commissioner launched the case once he returned to Australia.
Rotondo posted the images to the MrDeepFakes website, which has since been shut down.
In December 2023, Rotondo was fined for contempt of court, after admitting he breached court orders by not removing the imagery. He later shared his password so the deepfake images could be removed.
Sign up for Guardian Australia's breaking news email
A spokesperson for the eSafety commissioner said the regulator was seeking between $400,000 and $450,000 for the breaches of the Online Safety Act.
The spokesperson said the penalty submission reflected the seriousness of the breaches 'and the significant impacts on the women targeted'.
'The penalty will deter others from engaging in such harmful conduct,' they said.
eSafety said the non-consensual creation and sharing of explicit deepfake images caused significant psychological and emotional distress for victims.
The penalties hearing was held on Monday, and the court has reserved its decision.
Separately, federal criminal laws were passed in 2024 to combat explicit deepfakes.
In her opening statement to the Senate committee reviewing the bill in July last year, the eSafety commissioner, Julie Inman Grant, said deepfakes had increased on the internet by 550% since 2019, and pornographic videos made up 99% of the deepfake material online, with 99% of that imagery of women and girls.
'Deepfake image based abuse is not only becoming more prevalent but is also very gendered and incredibly distressing to the victim-survivor,' Inman Grant said.
'Shockingly, thousands of open-source AI apps like these have proliferated online and are often free and easy to use by anyone with a smartphone.
'So these apps make it simple and cost-free for the perpetrator, while the cost to the target is one of lingering and incalculable devastation.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Daily Mail
18 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
Aussie pop star Tones and I is charged over deadly dog attack - after her American bulldog escaped their $7m mansion and tore the neighbour's cavoodle to shreds
Aussie pop sensation Tones and I's dog has been put down after he killed a cavoodle by biting it on the neck and refusing to let go. The 32-year-old singer's American bulldog 'Boss' escaped her $7million mansion on the Mornington Peninsula in November last year and attacked her neighbour's dog. Boss was euthanized. On Thursday, Dromana Magistrates' Court ordered the singer, whose name is Toni Elizabeth Watson, to pay a $3000 fine and the council's costs, The Herald Sun reported. The court heard that Watson's neighbour, Wayne Schultz, was walking his two cavoodles when he spotted her chocolate Labrador Charlie stuck outside the electric gates. He called out to Watson's friend Tahlia as she arrived at the property and, as she opened the gate, Boss escaped, the magistrate heard. Boss bit one of Mr Schultz's cavoodles on the neck and would not let go. Mr Schultz, Watson's husband Jason 'Jimmy' Bedford and a bystander were forced to intervene and separate the two dogs. The elderly cavoodle died as a result of its injuries. 'The victim's family are devastated by the loss of their family pet and the manner in which the dog died in front of them,' prosecutor Colin McLean told the court. Mr Schultz was injured, with a bite on his knee and a bruised eye. The stranger's hand was fractured when he hit the bulldog while trying to separate the dogs. Watson was at home in the shower at the time. The court also heard that she wept with her neighbours on the night of the attack. The neighbours reportedly didn't accept her offer to pay for the cavoodle's cremation due to the fact the dog was 17-years-old. Daily Mail Australia has contacted Watson's team for comment. The pop star did not front court as she's currently in the US recording an album but was represented by barrister Cameron Scott. Bedford, whom she married in a secret ceremony in Bali in 2023, also attended court. Mr Scott told the court the musician had accepted responsibility and took the matter 'very seriously'. She was ordered to pay a fine for failing to securely confine two dogs and for not re-registering the American bulldog. Tones and I rose to fame from humble beginnings, starting her career busking. Her debut single Johnny Run Away was a hit and, on the back of that success, hit single Dance Monkey broke records and catapulted her to stardom. Dance Monkey hit a staggering three billion streams on Spotify in 2024, making her the first female artist in the world to achieve the mega streaming milestone. She took to Instagram to mark the achievement with a portrait of herself alongside the caption: 'The first female in the WORLD.' The hit is one of the most successful songs in Australian pop music history. Watson previously revealed she wrote the song while living in a van and 'playing music on the street'. Her life has since transformed, with the $7.08million mansion in Mount Eliza her fourth home. The stunning state-of-the-art property, bought by Watson in 2021, features a basement lounge, pool and spa, and marble kitchen complete with a $150,000 oven. The five-bedroom, five-bathroom mansion sits across two levels, and also features a tennis court, sunken fire pit and bar. There are also colour-changing light fixtures in the basement, a 3000-bottle wine cellar, wine lounge and underwater views of the pool.
Daily Mail
40 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
BREAKING NEWS Police swarm a home in Sydney's inner-west to find a man dead with stab wounds - as an arrest is made at the property
A man has been arrested after another man was found stabbed to death at a home in Sydney's inner-west. Emergency services were called to a home on Kembla Street, Croydon Park shortly after 5pm on Monday following a concern for welfare report. Police found the body of a man believed to be aged in his 50s with stab wounds. Another man, 32, who was arrested at the scene and taken to Burwood Police Station, where inquiries continue. No charges have yet been laid. A crime scene has been established and investigations commenced into the circumstances surrounding the incident. Police are expected to provide an update later on Monday night.
BBC News
an hour ago
- BBC News
Banbridge: Two men charged to court after Co Down disturbance
Two men arrested following a report of a disturbance in Banbridge, County Down, on Saturday, have been charged to court.A 40-year-old man is charged with assault occasioning actual bodily harm and assault on police.A 43-year-old man is charged with two counts of assault on are expected to appear before Newry Magistrates' Court on Monday. The incident occurred in the Scarva Walk area and homes were evacuated.A woman was taken to hospital for treatment to injuries that are not thought to be serious at this time.
