Influencers take on AI deepfakes with new creator protection agency

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Two social media creators, frustrated by having their work copied, teamed up to launch a service that has successfully taken down over 250,000 stolen posts.

Morgpie, a popular Twitch streamer, and Zander Small, who creates anime content for Instagram, together have over two million followers across their social media accounts.

The two influencers discovered they were facing the same issue: their content was being copied and shared without permission on various platforms, including piracy sites, Telegram, online forums, and other social media apps. Sometimes, this involved even more sophisticated manipulation, like deepfakes.

Dealing with online content theft is a growing issue, and it can be really harmful. Morgpie used to spend thousands of dollars each month trying to find and remove her stolen work, but people kept ignoring her requests and reposting her videos and streams anyway.

Frustrated with ongoing legal issues, Morgpie and Zander teamed up to create Fanlock, an agency designed to protect creators’ rights.

Influencers remove 250K hijacked posts with new creator protection startup

As a big supporter of creators, I’m really impressed with Fanlock. It’s a service that actively searches for people stealing content from influencers and gets it removed. What I love is that they don’t just send a simple takedown notice – they make it really costly for the thieves to keep going, practically forcing them to stop or face serious financial penalties. It’s a much stronger approach than what other companies do!

Since its launch on February 1st, Fanlock – created by Morgpie and Zander – has successfully removed over 250,000 posts from Google and permanently deleted 75,000 posts from the websites where they originally appeared.

We talked to these influencers about how difficult it is to manage Fanlock while also working full-time creating content. Zander described it as a constantly demanding job.

We’re completely dedicated to fixing this issue – it’s like working two full-time jobs. We’re not just managing from a distance; we’re actively involved every day because we’re personally affected by it, as our own content is at stake.

Zander manages the technical aspects and overall direction of Fanlock, while Morgpie focuses on connecting with creators and providing advice. Morgpie is particularly enthusiastic about Fanlock’s services because she’s personally experienced the damage caused by significant leaks in the past.

Having seen a lot of damaging leaks and AI-created deepfakes, my main focus right now is Fanlock,” she explained. “It’s never acceptable to create deepfakes of anyone, especially creators who haven’t chosen to participate in adult content. We’re building tools at Fanlock to help creators fight back against this kind of content and feel more in control. We’re committed to protecting creators from deepfakes and getting this harmful content removed.

Creators raise $200K to battle AI deepfakes and content leaks

Morgpie and Zander secured $200,000 in seed funding to develop Fanlock. Zander explains he personally created the system that scans Telegram, building it from the ground up and currently indexing over 60 million posts.

We keep track of over 10 million websites, and we actively search for pirated content on a wide range of online sources – including piracy forums, leak sites, and even hidden parts of the web that most services miss. We also look for cleverly disguised versions of creators’ names that people use when sharing content illegally, such as when they use codes like binary or hexadecimal.

Right now, Fanlock is run by a small team of three people who handle all the technical aspects. Zander, one of the founders, isn’t paying himself a salary, choosing instead to earn money from his own work, which means that all funding received goes directly back into improving the platform.

Look, we really wanted to make something special, built by people who actually create content, for those same people. That meant we had to prioritize the project itself over making a quick buck – making sure the vision came first, even if it meant sacrificing some profit.

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Fanlock claims average creator has 6,000+ hidden leaks online

Zander explained that the main reason people steal and share creators’ work is simply to make money. He described it as a large, hidden economy that earns “tens of thousands of dollars each month” by unfairly profiting from the work of creators who are just trying to earn a living.

What’s even more troubling is that Zander reported the typical Fanlock creator has their content leaked over 6,000 times across various online platforms like forums, Telegram, file-sharing sites, and streaming platforms.

He explained that most people didn’t even realize these leaks were happening until his team discovered them. He shared examples of creators having their personal lives exposed online through deepfakes, before they were even aware the content was out there. This is the core reason why his team does what they do.

Morgpie and Zander Small reveal how creators can protect their content from being stolen

We consulted Morgpie and Zander, who are knowledgeable about this topic, to get their advice for creators. We wanted to know how creators can prevent their content from being stolen and what steps they should take if they discover their work has been reposted without permission.

Look, Zander gave me some really solid advice, and I think it applies to a lot of us creators. He basically said not to freak out if people start ripping off your stuff – it happens to almost everyone who gets popular, and it’s not something you did wrong. But seriously, get some professional help early to protect your content. Don’t wait until your stuff is all over the internet before you start fighting back. And make sure whoever you hire can actually do something beyond just sending a basic DMCA takedown notice. You need someone who’s going to really fight for you when things get tough, or you’re just wasting your money.

Morgpie advises creators to price their content carefully. Selling it too cheaply increases the risk of leaks. A good way to help prevent this is by creating specific content bundles for fans. If videos from a particular bundle appear on leak sites, it’s easier to identify who leaked them and report the fan responsible.

Zander praised the Take It Down Act, saying it’s been a major help in Fanlock’s efforts to get stolen content removed, especially deepfakes. They use the act, along with all other legal options, to quickly get inappropriate and non-consensual intimate images taken down until the issue is fully resolved.

Honestly, I’m really disturbed by deepfakes. It feels like a whole new level of digital harassment. The idea that someone could use AI to create explicit content of another person without their permission is just awful, especially when it’s happening to creators who don’t even produce that kind of content themselves. It’s truly horrible.

Artificial intelligence is unfortunately helping pirates copy and share content more easily. That’s why we’re developing advanced technology to detect and remove pirated material. We aim to empower creators to protect their work and feel in control, rather than overwhelmed. We understand that unauthorized copies are incredibly damaging to creators’ well-being, and we prioritize addressing deepfakes immediately.

Deepfakes are becoming a growing problem for online creators, largely due to advances in artificial intelligence. Popular streamers like Pokimane, QTCinderella, and Sweet Anita have publicly called on tech companies to step in and create tools to stop the creation of deepfakes without people’s permission.

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2026-02-25 23:50