Arrest in the USA: Man allegedly AI-generated 13,000 nude photos of children
The US government wants to track the production and distribution of AI-generated nude images of minors in the same way as real photos. One arrest was made.
(Image: Black Salmon/Shutterstock.com)
A man has been arrested in the USA for allegedly using Stable Diffusion to generate thousands of nude images and sexualized depictions of children using AI. This was announced by the US Department of Justice. This could be the first time that a US federal court has clarified how the procedure is handled under federal legislation, adds the Washington Post. Deputy US Attorney General Lisa Monaco has already assured that her department will aggressively pursue all those who produce and disseminate child sexual abuse material (CSAM) - "regardless of how it was created". Depictions of child abuse that are AI-generated are also prohibited and those responsible will be held accountable.
Discovered by Instagram
As summarized by the US Department of Justice, the 42-year-old man is accused of using Stable Diffusion to generate thousands of "realistic images of prepubescent minors". Many of them show the AI-generated children naked or only partially clothed and in lascivious poses or performing sexual acts. Text instructions were found on his electronic devices, which he used to create over 13,000 images. He is also said to have communicated with a 15-year-old via Instagram and described his actions to him. Because he had also sent some of the images in this way, the service reported him, which brought him to the attention of the law enforcement authorities.
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The arrest now comes against the backdrop of an alleged rapid increase in AI-generated depictions of child abuse. In the autumn, a British child protection organization warned that such images could flood the internet. Some of the images look so realistic that even trained experts could no longer tell the difference between them and real photos and, depending on the legal situation, they would therefore have to be treated as real images. Worst of all, the technology now available could be used to generate new AI images from photos of real victims of child abuse. The man in the USA will probably not be charged with this. If convicted, he faces up to 70 years in prison.
(mho)
