Offenders Using AI to Generate Child Abuse Images, Nearly 3,000 Found in One Forum

A new report warns that offenders are using AI to generate realistic images of child sexual abuse. They are sharing datasets to customize models and sell subscriptions.

The nonprofit Internet Watch Foundation found nearly 3,000 illegal AI-generated images on one forum, including of babies and celebrities.

AI systems like Stable Diffusion are being used. Criminals are fine-tuning models with existing abuse images to generate new ones.

Investigators have flagged over 13,500 AI-generated child abuse images in one database. The number is likely much higher.

Offenders are exchanging hundreds of images of existing victims. They are making requests about specific individuals and sharing face datasets.