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Pontianak, Indonesia: university suspended six students victimized by AI deepfakes; the sanctions were revoked after student protests

In May 2026, a case of alleged AI abuse surfaced at Tanjungpura University (Untan), Pontianak: a biology student identified by the initials RY allegedly used AI to turn photos of female classmates and other students into vulgar content, discovered when a classmate borrowing his phone found manipulated images in the gallery. The university's task force examined nine victims and witnesses and opened a reporting channel. The university then suspended six of the victimized students for two semesters — while the alleged perpetrator received a lighter sanction — prompting a student demonstration on 14 September 2026 demanding the victims' reinstatement and RY's expulsion. At the protest, Vice Rector Dr Achmadi announced the six sanctions were revoked and the students' academic status reactivated, with the corrected decree to be handed over on 15 September.

AI System

AI image-manipulation tools (unspecified)

Unknown

Occurred

1 May 2026 to 15 Sept 2026

Reported

11 September 2026

Event location

Indonesia

Platform

other

What the evidence supports

AI involvement: supported. The case is reported as alleged AI abuse: manipulated photos found in the suspect's phone gallery and reported as AI-generated vulgar content (detikKalimantan's account; 'dugaan'/alleged framing throughout). The specific tool is not named; the task force's device examination findings are not public.

AI-to-person relation

  • Depicted or impersonated the person

Core relations are communication, acting on someone’s behalf, and depiction or impersonation. Decision and claim relations are retained as contextual cases.

Someone else’s AI use. Settings: Education.

Claim status: Reported

In early May 2026 a case of alleged AI abuse surfaced at Untan: RY, a Biology FMIPA student (class of 2025), allegedly used AI to turn photos of female classmates and other students into vulgar content; it came to light when a classmate borrowing his phone found manipulated photos in the gallery.

Causal attribution: Reported with the outlet's 'dugaan' (alleged) framing; the task force's findings and any police complaint are not public in the inspected source.

  • News report (supports): 'Kasus dugaan penyalahgunaan teknologi AI tersebut mencuat di media sosial pada awal Mei 2026. RY, mahasiswa Jurusan Biologi FMIPA Untan angkatan 2025, disebut diduga menggunakan teknologi AI untuk memanipulasi foto teman kuliah dan sejumlah mahasiswi menjadi konten vulgar bermuatan asusila'; the borrowed-phone discovery passage.

Claim status: Reported

The university's Satgas PPKPT task force examined nine victims and witnesses, deepened examination of the complainant's devices, and opened a reporting channel for further unidentified victims; victims come from the campus, the suspect's high-school circle in Singkawang, and universities outside West Kalimantan.

Causal attribution: The 'nine victims and witnesses' figure mixes roles; only the six documented suspended victims are counted as harmed persons.

  • News report (supports): 'Satgas PPKPT Untan telah memeriksa sembilan korban dan saksi, melakukan pendalaman terhadap perangkat milik terlapor, hingga membuka kanal pelaporan bagi korban lain yang belum teridentifikasi'; the victims'-origin passage.

Claim status: Reported

The university suspended six of the victimized students for two semesters; after the 14 September 2026 student demonstration, Vice Rector Dr Achmadi announced the six sanctions were revoked and their academic status reactivated, with the corrected decree to be handed over on 15 September.

Causal attribution: The suspension and revocation are reported through the outlet's account of the demonstration and the Vice Rector's on-record statements; the suspension decree itself was not inspected.

  • News report (supports): 'keenam mahasiswi tersebut disebut mendapat sanksi skorsing selama dua semester'; Achmadi: 'Yang keenam mahasiswi itu sanksinya dicabut dan kuliahnya tetap aktif kembali'; the corrected decree to be handed over 'Selasa (15/9)'.

Claim status: Reported

Students welcomed the revocation but said they were not fully satisfied and continued to demand RY's expulsion (drop out); the alleged perpetrator's sanction remained pending.

Causal attribution: The student demands are reported; the university's decision on RY is pending.

  • News report (supports): 'keputusan tersebut belum membuat massa sepenuhnya puas'; 'Mahasiswa masih menuntut kepastian mengenai sanksi terhadap mahasiswa berinisial RY... mendesak Untan menjatuhkan sanksi drop out (DO)'.

What remains unknown

  • The specific AI tool used is not named in the inspected reporting.
  • Whether the task force or police confirmed the images were AI-generated, and any forensic findings from the phone, are not public in the inspected source.
  • The six suspended students' basis for suspension (which rule they were accused of violating) is not stated in the inspected source.
  • Some victims come from the suspect's high-school circle; their ages are unstated and they may include minors — sensitivity note recorded.
  • The corrected decree's contents (handover planned for 15 September) and the decision on RY are pending.
  • The earlier report in the same series (11 September) is listed but its body was not re-extracted in this pass.
Source reading, translation and location

News report · id · Source inspected

Read in Indonesian on 2026-09-15 (datePublished 2026-09-15T06:58+07:00; 12 substantive paragraphs). Model translation, no human reviewer.

Event countries: Indonesia. Affected-person countries: Indonesia. Court countries: Unknown.

Event and affected persons: Tanjungpura University, Pontianak, West Kalimantan, with some victims from the suspect's high-school circle in Singkawang and universities outside West Kalimantan — all in Indonesia. No court proceeding is reported; the university's task force and rectorate are not courts.

Reviewed for publication 2026-09-15: Published under the 2026-09-15 charter as a harmful-artifact case with a consequential institutional response: students depicted in alleged AI-generated vulgar images were suspended by their university, reversed after protests. The victims are unnamed in the source and here; the suspect is identified by initials only, as in the source; the 'dugaan' (alleged) framing is preserved throughout.

What Happened

The case surfaced on social media in early May 2026: RY, a student in the Biology department of the Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences at Untan (class of 2025), is alleged to have used AI technology to manipulate photos of female classmates and other students into vulgar content with immoral elements. The case came to light when a classmate borrowed RY's phone for coursework and found manipulated photos in the gallery. The reported victims come from the campus environment, RY's former high-school circle in Singkawang, and universities outside West Kalimantan. Untan's task force for the prevention and handling of sexual violence (Satgas PPKPT) examined nine victims and witnesses, deepened the examination of the complainant's devices, and opened a channel for further unidentified victims. The university then imposed two-semester suspensions (skorsing) on six of the victimized students — reported at the demonstration as a grievance, since the alleged perpetrator faced demands for expulsion (drop out) instead. On 14 September 2026 students demonstrated on campus with two demands: revoke the six victims' suspensions and expel RY. Speaking to the crowd, Vice Rector for Student and Alumni Affairs Dr Achmadi said the rectorate had changed the earlier decision: the six sanctions were revoked, the students' academic status was reactivated, and the corrected decree would be handed to the students on 15 September. Students welcomed the revocation but said they were not fully satisfied and continued to demand RY's expulsion. The alleged perpetrator's sanction remained pending at the time of reporting.

Reported harm

Female students depicted in AI-generated vulgar images were then suspended for two semesters by their own university — an institutional re-victimization reversed only after student protests — while continuing to seek the alleged perpetrator's expulsion.

Psychological DistressReputational HarmEducational Harm

How Harm Occurred

A student allegedly used AI image manipulation to create vulgar depictions of fellow students; the university's response first punished the depicted victims with suspensions, compounding the harm until protests forced a reversal.

Outcome

Resolved

The six victims' suspensions were revoked at the 14 September 2026 demonstration, with the corrected rectorate decree to be handed over on 15 September. The alleged perpetrator's sanction (students demand expulsion) is pending. No police or court proceeding is reported in the inspected sources.

Interaction Concerns

Third Party Harm Facilitation

People described

Female students victimized by the AI-manipulated images (unnamed; at least six suspended classmates plus others from the campus, the suspect's high-school circle and other universities); the alleged perpetrator is identified only by the initials RY

People reported harmed in this case

At least 6 people

0 AI participants · 6 other people harmed

Lower bound: the six victimized students whose two-semester suspensions were revoked on 14 September 2026 (Vice Rector's on-record account). The task force examined 'nine victims and witnesses' and opened a channel for unidentified victims, so the total is larger but not quantified by role; only the six documented suspended victims are counted.

Counted once within this case. The same person may appear in other cases. This count does not establish AI causation.

Cite this case

Compiled per our published methodology: verification statuses, sourcing standards, and corrections process.

APA

NOPE. (2026). Pontianak, Indonesia: university suspended six students victimized by AI deepfakes; the sanctions were revoked after student protests. NOPE: AI and people. https://nope.net/incidents/2026-untan-pontianak-deepfake-victims-suspended

BibTeX

@misc{2026_untan_pontianak_deepfake_victims_suspended,
  title = {Pontianak, Indonesia: university suspended six students victimized by AI deepfakes; the sanctions were revoked after student protests},
  author = {NOPE},
  year = {2026},
  howpublished = {NOPE: AI and people},
  url = {https://nope.net/incidents/2026-untan-pontianak-deepfake-victims-suspended}
}

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