The Telegram logo is seen on a smartphone in this picture illustration taken Sept. 15, 2017. Reuters-Yonhap

Korean police have requested their French counterparts to enhance cooperation in investigating criminal activities on Telegram, a messaging app frequently used by deepfake criminals.

"We requested an international mutual legal assistance to cooperate with the French investigation authorities. It is expected to take some time because it is a process through the Ministry of Justice or the Ministry of Foreign Affairs," Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency Commissioner Kim Bong-sik said during Monday's press briefing held at the agency's headquarters.

In the wake of a series of deepfake sex crimes using Telegram, Korean police notified the Dubai-based platform that it would be investigated for allegedly aiding and abetting criminals, violating the nation's Youth Sex Protection Act and the Sexual Violence Punishment Act.

This is the first time the Korean police have targeted Telegram directly for its role in such crimes. The company has long been criticized for not responding to requests from various government organizations and victims of crimes to delete problematic posts and channels.

In August of this year, French prosecutors arrested Telegram founder and CEO Pavel Durov and indicted him on preliminary charges of conspiracy by neglecting the distribution of pornography, drug trafficking and money laundering of his messaging app.

The Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency has recently formed a task force to crack down on deepfake video clips. A total of 136 are now under investigation. Of the 84 suspects identified in those cases, 59, or some 70 percent of the total, were found to be teenagers.