Asia - South China Morning Post

A man sent a woman an AI-generated photo of her face on a nude body and set up cameras under her work desk for a live “upskirt” feed.

The woman was alarmed by his actions and became fearful whenever she was approached by men as a result.

Desmond Han Jiancong, a 31-year-old Singaporean, pleaded guilty on Monday to one count each of installing equipment to enable voyeurism and insulting the modesty of the victim.

Another three charges will be considered in sentencing.

The court heard that Han and...

One of Japan’s best-loved snack brands is switching to monochrome packaging for a number of its products due to a shortage of naphtha – a crude-oil derivative used in petrochemicals and printing inks – caused by the closure of the Strait of Hormuz.

In a statement issued on Tuesday, Calbee said it would “temporarily revise packaging specifications for certain products in response to supply instability affecting certain raw materials amid ongoing tensions in the Middle East”.

The decision by the...

On his last morning in charge of Malaysia’s anti-corruption watchdog, Azam Baki did what he had always done – talked tough and walked away on his own terms.

But the man who spent the past six years making the country’s powerful sweat left behind a question he never satisfactorily answered: what do you do when the anti-corruption chief becomes the story?

Analysts say Azam’s exit puts Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, who stood by him throughout, in a difficult position ahead of the next general...

Malaysian rescuers were searching on Tuesday for 14 Indonesians missing after a boat believed to be carrying undocumented migrants sank off Pangkor Island, the latest emergency along a dangerous sea route used by workers trying to enter Malaysia by boat.

The Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency said 23 people, comprising 16 men and seven women, had been rescued after the boat went down in waters off the resort island in Perak state early on Monday.

Authorities believe 37 people were on board,...

We have selected seven stories from the SCMP’s coverage of Asia over the past week that resonated with our readers and shed light on topical issues. If you would like to see more of our reporting, please consider subscribing.

1. ‘Foreigner won’: Filipinos divided over pageant winner’s US roots

The Philippines has crowned its newest Miss Universe candidate, Bea Millan-Windorski, as the country – known for its penchant for beauty pageants – prepares to send its latest representative to the global...

South Korea is treading carefully in attributing blame for the strike on one of its cargo ships earlier this month, even as preliminary signs point to Iranian drones being the culprit.

Seoul has surveillance footage of the incident in the early hours of May 4 – when two airborne objects struck the HMM Namu while it lay at anchor off the United Arab Emirates – but so far has said little.

Observers believe the government is biding its time and waiting to deliver a verdict until after a highly...

When a 52-year-old Indonesian woman approached her saying she was broke and needed a place to stay, Lim felt sorry for her.

Out of sympathy, the 29-year-old Malaysian rented out her flat in Ampang, Kuala Lumpur, to the Indonesian without signing any formal tenancy agreement in March last year.

Now, she is full of regret.

Lim said the tenant had used the flat address to secure loans and loan sharks are now harassing the house owner.

“The loan sharks threatened to burn down the house and splash...

Hiroshi Suzuki, Japan’s ambassador to Britain, is becoming a social media sensation as followers embrace his unbridled enthusiasm for everything the country has to offer.

Videos of him singing the Welsh national anthem, for example, and his valiant attempts to copy local dialects and expressions have generated an outpouring of love for him online.

Many comments say Suzuki is reminding often pessimistic Britons of the nation’s achievements and rich heritage.

His entertaining efforts have garnered...

Chinese-language videos suspected to be AI deepfakes with different narrators berating Singapore for its treatment of China and sidling up to the United States have caused a stir online and sparked discussion on their source.

The clips, each featuring an individual in a different setting and circulating on Chinese platforms such as Douyin and WeChat, were most likely generated by artificial intelligence, according to digital experts, pointing to clues such as identical scripts.

A check by This...

Japan’s Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi is pushing through legislation to establish the country’s first centralised intelligence agency since the second world war, driven by concerns that its existing set-up is too fragmented to keep pace with espionage, cyberthreats and “grey zone” operations.

The plan, recently endorsed by the US Federal Bureau of Investigation, would transform the Cabinet Intelligence and Research Office (CIRO) into a central hub, drawing in analysts, technologists and...