SDLP MLA Cara Hunter has recalled being asked for a sexual act by a man in the street after a deepfake video of her was circulated as part of a new Channel 4 documentary which saw former reality TV star Vicky Pattison release her own AI-generated sex tape on social media.
The programme titled Vicky Pattison: My Deepfake Sex Tape which aired this evening (Tuesday) on Channel 4 explored the issue of image-based abuse and its effect on women and girls.
It featured the 37-year-old, known for her role in MTV’s Geordie Shore, as she directed, produced and distributed an explicit video before using artificial intelligence (AI) technology to superimpose her face onto the actor portraying her likeness.
During the programme, Pattison is seen speaking with Ms Hunter about her own experience with deepfake technology at Stormont.
The East Londonderry MLA has previously been the victim of sexual harassment, something she believes was used as a “chauvinistic digital weapon” aimed at reputational damage and derailing her electoral ambitions nearly three years ago after a pornographic video clip was shared thousands of times on WhatsApp – that was accompanied with false claims that she appeared in it.
As a result, she received numerous unsolicited messages from men on social media.
In one scene during the documentary, Ms Hunter shows the television presenter the video which circulated on social media to which the presenter said it looked like “amateur pornography.”
“I walking down a street and a man recognised me and asked for a sexual favour, it’s horrifying,” the SDLP MLA told the presenter.
“I was getting people sniggering and giggling at me (which canvassing) thinking it was actually me in the video.
“I want to know who done this, to this day I wonder if I could be passing them on the street, and I wouldn’t know. It’s traceless,” she explained to Pattison, when asked if she is any closer to finding the person who created the video.
When informed by the reality star that she planned on producing her own deep-fake pornography, and Ms Hunter says: “I am worried for you”.
Ms Hunter has previously opened up about being harassed online and delivered a TedTalk last October outlining the devastating impact of the “nightmare” which almost ruined her career just weeks before an election.
The presentation which explored AI’s potential to undermine truth and democracy has been viewed hundreds of thousands of times online. “Sadly, these things live forever and the rumours that come with them live forever as well,” she previously told the Belfast Telegraph.
During the documentary, Pattison is also seen viewing deepfake pornography with her husband, and admitted she worried how producing her own deepfake material would affect their marriage.
“I am hugely passionate about women’s issues and have found myself increasingly disturbed by how prevalent the problem of deepfake porn is becoming,” Ms Pattison said.
“This is just the latest trend in the abuse of women and having met some of the inspirational women who have put their lives back together after being victims of sexually-explicit deepfake abuse, I feel more strongly than ever that we need to stand with these women and continue to put pressure on the greater powers within the Government to catch up with the speed at which this technology is advancing.
“As part of the documentary, I have made the challenging decision to release my own deepfake sex tape online, which I directed and produced with actors to ensure the process was fully consensual from start to finish.”