SEREMBAN: The authorities have been urged to open an investigation into a Form Five student who allegedly used artificial intelligence (AI) to generate explicit deepfake images of his female schoolmates.
Lawyer Ng Kian Nam, representing a group of concerned parents, emphasised that a formal probe is critical to determine whether the doctored photographs have been disseminated across social media platforms.
Ng alleged the student reportedly produced around 200 explicit deepfake images targeting a large number of female students at the school.
However, he said that there had been no developments even after five police reports were lodged in August.
"We have been informed that the school only handed down a one-week suspension.
"Furthermore, an investigating officer claimed there were no criminal elements involved, suggesting the matter be left entirely to education authorities," Ng told reporters during a press conference at his office, which was also attended by some of the affected parents.
He highlighted a legal precedent from April last year in Johor, where a 16-year-old student was officially charged for generating similar deepfake images, arguing that this case should be treated with the same legal severity.
The Johor teenager, who was expelled from school, eventually pleaded guilty to charges under Section 292(a) of the Penal Code and under the Sexual Offences Against Children Act 2017.
According to Ng, the incident came to light on Aug 12, when a Form Two student discovered an unlocked mobile phone left unattended in the school surau.
Upon accessing the device, the student uncovered a cache of explicit photographs of female schoolmates that had been digitally altered using AI.
The boy then forwarded several of these images to his older sister, a Form Five student at the same school, which quickly alerted parents to the situation.
Ng said that despite a series of meetings involving the school administration, its board of governors, the Parent-Teacher Association and the education department, the boy was only given a one-week suspension.
He claimed that this quick return has triggered widespread anxiety and safety concerns among the female students.
A mother of one of the victims, whose doctored explicit photographs were found on the suspect's phone, expressed the parents' frustration during the press conference.
"We only want an assurance that the boy has completely deleted all the images and did not share or sell them on other platforms," she said.
The mother also highlighted the bureaucratic hurdles the families have faced while seeking help, describing a frustrating cycle of buck-passing between institutions.
"When we go to the education authorities, we are told to go to the police.
"And when we go to the police, they tell us to refer the matter back to the education department," she said, adding that it is entirely unfair for parents to be given the runaround in such a sensitive and serious matter.
