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Dear Sir/Madam
Enquiry Reference: 958 - 24
I write in connection with regards to your Freedom of Information request. Below is your request and our response.
1.Between 31st January 2024 and 30th September 2024, how many reports did your police force receive alleging the offence in Section 66B of the Sexual Offences Act 2003 of sharing a photograph or film which appears to show another person in an intimate state without consent, commonly known as 'fake porn' or 'deepfake porn.' Such images have been digitally manipulated to look like someone else without their consent. Please only include reports of 'deepfake porn' or 'fake porn' where an image has been digitally altered to make it sexually explicit and NOT other intimate image abuse offences. Please can you tell me:
For clarity and to help you locate the information, I am asking for reports/charges under the following law, Section 66B, Sexual Offences Act 2003:
https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2003/42/section/66B
Having made enquiries within the Force the analyst searched for all crimes under crime code 088/15 - Sharing or threatening to share intimate photograph or film between the above dates and read each of the MO’s.
There are 2 crimes listed which appear to have been created using altered images. They are the same crime with 2 different victims. No charges have been brought so far.
Please note that all statistical data supplied in relation to Freedom of Information requests is a snapshot of data held at the time the request was received by the Freedom of Information office and is subject to constant change/updates.
The Cleveland Police response to your request is unique and it should be noted that Police Forces do not use generic systems or identical procedures to capture and record data therefore responses from Cleveland Police should not be used as a comparison with any other force response you receive.
If you are not satisfied with this response or any actions taken in dealing with your request, you have the right to request an independent internal review of your case under our review procedure. The Freedom of Information Code of Practice (see below link) states that a request for internal review should be made within 20 working days of the date on this response or 40 working days if extenuating circumstances to account for the delay can be evidenced. Public authorities are not obliged to accept internal reviews after this date.
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/freedom-of-information-code-of-practice
Yours sincerely
Information Rights Decision Maker