Porn site Mr Deepfake shuts down permanently

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Mr Deepfakes, one of the internet's most notorious sites for hosting and distributing nonconsensual deepfake pornography, has shut down for good following the loss of a critical service provider and significant data.

A message posted on the website's homepage confirms the permanent shutdown: "A critical service provider has terminated service permanently. Data loss has made it impossible to continue operation. We will not be relaunching. Any website claiming this is fake." 

The site's videos and forums are currently inaccessible, and its domain is expected to expire in the near future.

The precise reason for the takedown, including which service provider cut ties with the platform and why, remains unknown. The identity of the person behind the site is also still largely concealed, though German newspaper Der Spiegel reported in January that the operator is a 36-year-old hospital employee based in Toronto.

Also read: YouTube getting swamped with deepfake videos of celebs selling Medicare

Also Read: Deepfake CFO scams company for $25 million in Hong Kong

Mr Deepfakes operated similarly to other pornographic video-sharing platforms, allowing users to upload videos and connect with content creators who offered custom deepfake services for a fee, typically paid in cryptocurrency. 

Unlike mainstream adult sites and social platforms, which have increasingly banned and moderated nonconsensual synthetic sexual content, Mr Deepfakes continued to host such content until its closure.

The platform was also central to the development of deepfake technologies. Its forums served as a hub for creators of nonconsensual synthetic media, where they collaborated on new techniques, shared tools and datasets, and distributed resources used to replicate the likeness of real individuals. 

One of the most advanced deepfake creation tools, DeepFaceLab, was significantly developed through contributions from the Mr. Deepfakes community. 

Development in Artificial Intelligence techniques have given rise to even more democratisation of deepfake, with its use no more restricted to prurient kicks. 

In November 2024, a finance professional in Hong Kong, working for a multinational corporation, lost his firm $25 million after falling for a deepfake rendition of the company's London-based chief financial officer.

YouTube earlier reported getting swamped by poor-quality artificial intelligence duplicates of well-known figures such as Joe Rogan, Taylor Swift, Steve Harvey, Ice Cube, Andrew Tate, Oprah, and The Rock promoting fraudulent schemes related to Medicare and Medicaid.