Sheffield woman's campaign after 'deepfake' image used in internet pornography

A Yorkshire author who found a faked image of her face used on internet pornography was horrified to find current laws mean there was nothing she could do about it.

Helen Mort, from Sheffield, is one of a growing number of victims of so-called 'deep fake porn'.

It is a process in which images of them are digitally manipulated and then used without their consent.

Helen said its discovery left her feeling ashamed.

"Initially it had a pretty devastating effect on my confidence I felt really ashamed I imagined when I was walking down the street that people would somehow know about these images. It does make you want to hide.''

''I thought how can I tell my family this has happened how can I talk to people, I didn't particularly want to leave the house, I felt really really anxious for the weeks that followed and really quite low.''

Experts fear the practise is getting simpler and will become more widespread.

Professor Clare McGlynn, a legal expert, said the technology is getting easier and actions needs to be taken.

"This is a significant and growing global problem, we know that more and more deep-fakes are being made we know the technology is getting easier, we know there are more and more victims so unless we take steps to prevent this kind of abuse, to take steps against perpetrators it's only going to grow."

Helen is now campaigning for new legislation to stop it happening and has the backing of her MP.

Today, the Government confirmed a review is underway looking into the issue. It is introducing an online safety bill to tackle such issues by putting more responsibilities on hosting platforms.