The Hunter: Unmasking Online Harassers and Deepfake Crimes

The Nexus of Online Harassment

• 🎯 The website hosting doctored photos is identified as a central hub for campaigns harassing women globally.
• 🌐 This investigation, sparked by a victim in New Zealand, reveals a connection to similar incidents in Levittown, New York.

Detective Doug Nuku's Investigation

• 🕵️ Detective Doug Nuku of New Zealand Police was introduced to the case by a colleague, finding a victim bombarded with horrific, manipulated images for years.
• 💔 The victim, facing severe mental distress and potential suicidal thoughts, had previously been unable to get adequate help from other police stations due to a lack of capability and understanding.
• 💡 Nuku, identifying as a "hunter," took on the case to proactively pursue perpetrators rather than waiting for reports.

Private Investigator Will Wallace's Role

• 💻 Private investigator Will Wallace was brought in due to his known ability to tackle complex cases, described as a "little terrier" for his persistence.
• 🔍 Wallace's initial task was to find where the victim's altered photos were being posted, leading him to discover the "come on printed pics" website, a site he described as an "online sewer."
• 📊 By analyzing posts, Wallace could identify the primary harasser, their methods of organization, and coordination of others.

Lucy's Experience with Online Abuse

• 📱 Lucy, a victim from New Zealand, experienced harassment starting in 2015, including fake Tinder profiles using her photos and explicit content sent via Snapchat.
• ⚠️ The abuse escalated over years, with threats to contact her parents and send graphic photos, causing significant fear and impacting her relationships.
• 🚓 Despite attempts to report the incidents to the police in 2015 and again as an adult, Lucy found law enforcement lacked the digital literacy to understand and address the online harassment.

Identifying and Apprehending the Perpetrator

• 🌐 Wallace used open-source intelligence techniques, including tools like the Facebook GFF tool, to track the suspect's online activities across pseudonyms and platforms.
• 🕵️ Evidence, including a distinctive floral comforter seen in a suspect's photo and on a pornographic website, helped connect Finn Cotum to the crimes.
• ⚖️ Finn Cotum pleaded guilty to blackmail, causing harm by posting digital communication, and possession of child sexual abuse materials, receiving a 7-year prison sentence.

The Broader Issue of Deepfakes and Website Responsibility

• 🖼️ Will Wallace observed that the website facilitated the use of deepfakes, creating images of women in sexual positions or appearing abused, highlighting a growing problem.
• ⚖️ The series emphasizes the lag between technological advancement (like deepfakes) and the law's ability to address such crimes, leaving victims and law enforcement to navigate uncharted territory.
• 🌐 The investigation highlighted the difficulty in prosecuting crimes when perpetrators use encrypted accounts and VPNs to mask their location and identity.