Politicians from a second European country are calling for the extradition of the Canadian man behind a notorious, pornographic website which featured deepfake images and videos of celebrities, politicians and private citizens.
Members of three Dutch political parties — the VVD, GroenLinks-PvdA and BoerBurgerBewegin (BBB) — are planning to submit a written request to have David Do extradited for his involvement in the MrDeepFakes website, Dutch newspaper AD first reported.
“People like this need to be punished … they have no idea what harm they are doing,” Caroline van der Plas, leader of the BBB, told CBC News.
In May, CBC’s Visual Investigation Unit — in collaboration with the open-source investigative outlet Bellingcat and the Danish publications Politiken and Tjekdet — revealed that Do, a pharmacist who then worked for the Oak Valley Health network in the Toronto area, was a key person behind MrDeepFakes.com.
The website was shut down on May 4 after CBC News and its media partners told Do that it would be naming him and revealing his role in the enterprise.
Van der Plas was among the dozens of Dutch celebrities and politicians of which non-consensual deepfake images and videos were posted on MrDeepfakes.
“For me it feels like you’re digitally raped,” said Van der Plas. “A lot of people would know it’s deepfake but a lot of people are also ignorant … And maybe they think it is real. It’s horrible.”
In the Netherlands, it is illegal to create, possess or distribute deepfake porn.
“[Our justice minister] promised me that he was going to take action to see if Mr. Do can be extradited,” she said.
In May, Danish MP Søren Søndergaard asked his country’s justice minister for Do’s extradition. The MrDeepFakes site also had victims from Denmark.
Canada has extradition treaties with both countries, which state it can agree to extradite someone if their alleged act is a crime both here and in the requesting country. Deepfake porn is not specifically outlawed in Canada as of yet, but it’s possible Do could be extradited on the basis that he may have violated existing harassment or defamation laws.
Do has not been charged with a crime in Canada. He has not responded to calls for comment.
MrDeepFakes was the world’s most notorious website for non-consensual deepfake porn until CBC’s visual investigations team — along with partners Bellingcat, Tjekdet and Politiken — exposed the Canadian pharmacist who played a key role in the site.
Support is available for anyone who has experienced sexual violence. You can access crisis lines and local support services through this Government of Canada website (https://bit.ly/3D1rUmb) or the Ending Violence Association of Canada database (https://bit.ly/3ilpp67). If you’re in immediate danger or fear for your safety or that of others around you, please call 911.
Prime Minister Mark Carney pledged during the spring’s election campaign that he would work to have the production of non-consensual pornographic deepfakes criminalized.
The Department of Justice would not say whether it has had conversations with either the Netherlands or Denmark on an extradition.
“Extradition requests are confidential state-to-state communications,” it said in a statement.
A spokesperson for the Prime Minister’s Office told CBC News in May that passing a law criminalizing non-consensual deepfakes is a priority.
“Our government will protect the victims of sexual violence,” the spokesperson said. “It will also increase penalties for the distribution of intimate images without consent and sexual assault on summary conviction.”
At its peak, MrDeepFakes, had more than 650,000 registered users, and featured videos of Canadians such as Michael Bublé, Justin Trudeau and Avril Lavigne. The content had drawn more than two billion views since its inception in 2018.
Do was fired from his job at Oak Valley Health as an in-patient pharmacist at Markham Stouffville Hospital and Uxbridge Hospital in mid-May.
The Ontario College of Pharmacists says it is investigating Do’s alleged conduct, but would not provide additional details due to confidentiality.
