Glossary · technical
deepfake
A class of synthetic media — typically video — produced by generative AI models trained to substitute one person's face or body for another's. The term entered wide use in late 2017 following a Reddit forum dedicated to face-swap shorts. In an adult-content context, deepfakes are most often associated with non-consensual intimate imagery (NCII).
Used in
Encyclopedia entries that reference this term.
- The 18 USC §2257 record-keeping regime: 1988-2026 — The US federal record-keeping requirement that has structured adult-content production compliance for almost four decades — its 1988 origins, the amendments that have reshaped its operational meaning, the 2010s litigation that narrowed its enforcement scope, and the post-2020 environment in which the regime now operates.
- AI, deepfakes, and the synthetic adult content debate (2026) — A working overview of how generative AI is reshaping adult-content production, detection, and policy in 2026 — what the research literature says, what the major platforms have committed to, and what the open questions look like at the end of the first decade of consumer-grade deepfake tools.
- The post-2020 payment-processor reordering of adult media — How a sequence of Mastercard, Visa, and platform-policy decisions in 2020–2021 restructured the compliance, distribution, and labour landscape of the legitimate adult industry — and what the new equilibrium looks like five years later.
- Tube-site economics and the consolidation of adult video distribution — How the free-to-view tube-site model that emerged in 2006–2007 reshaped adult video distribution, what the consolidated ecosystem under MindGeek/Aylo and its peers actually looks like in mid-2026, and where the structural pressure points sit going forward.
Full glossary index (70)
All terms in the Step Secrets Editorial Glossary. Each is a standalone reference page.
- AggregateRating
- Aylo
- C2PA
- compliance-as-a-service
- creator platform
- edge cache
- gonzo
- IndexNow
- KYC
- MindGeek
- NCII
- partner program
- pcombo
- performer-led brand
- RTA
- scenario-led production
- specialty merchant
- sitemap
- studio-tier
- §2257
- tube site
- XBIZ
- OnlyFans
- Fansly
- PPV
- partner-program traffic
- creator economy
- CFR Part 75
- primary producer
- secondary producer
- Free Speech Coalition
- age assurance
- AVN Awards
- XBIZ Awards
- ARCOM
- Online Safety Act
- JuSchG
- feature
- CPM
- CDN
- KJM
- studio network
- compliance documentation
- scene library
- distribution stack
- verified bot
- AVN
- AEE
- Bing Webmaster Tools
- GSC
- Schema.org
- JSON-LD
- rich snippet
- helpful content update
- AI Overview
- Hidden Gems
- pay-site
- mojeek
- BoodiGo
- Common Crawl
- Yandex Webmaster
- Pornhub
- XVideos
- WGCZ Holding
- YouPorn
- IndexNow protocol
- Naver
- Seznam
- AdsBot-Google