Artificial Intelligence seems to be getting way out of hand with bad actors using them for nefarious purposes. A 14-year-old girl from Westfield High School in New Jersey, US, is taking matters into her own hands when it comes to tackling the misuse of generative AI to target millions of unsuspecting underage girls like herself.
In October, the young girl, while she was sitting in her history class, heard a rumour that some boys had morphed naked images of her classmates. She soon learned that one of those images was of her, which was created using an AI ‘nudify’ website that turns full-clothed images into photo-realistic nude images. The girl’s story was featured on CBS News’ 60 Minutes hosted by Anderson Cooper, where it came to be known that over 100 such ‘nudify’ sites were active around the world.
Based on the report, a probe into the matter revealed around 30 similar incidents across US schools in the last two years, with many more believed to have occurred around the world. The report was based on one such site that got over three million visitors in November 2024 alone. According to the probe, these sites are advertised as easy-to-use and have no real verification process in place even though they claim to be age-restricted.
What happened to the 14-year-old girl?
“I think that was like the most chaotic day I’ve ever witnessed in a school. Somebody gets an inkling of something and it just spreads. It’s like rapid fire, it just goes through everyone. And so then when someone hears this, it’s like, wait, like AI? No one thinks that could happen to you,” the student said while describing the ordeal.
According to the report, a boy had downloaded her photos from Instagram and uploaded them to a nudify site to morph it. One of the sexually explicit, AI-generated images was also shared on Snapchat. Following the incident, the girl students were summoned to the principal’s office over the school’s public address system. “I feel like that was a major violation of our privacy,” the girl said when asked about the school’s handling of the situation. The school imposed a one-day suspension as punishment to one of the boys.
What are Nudify sites and how do they operate?
The incident brings forth several technical challenges. Investigator Kolina Koltai, highlights some concerning aspects of such incidents. She told Cooper that nudify sites often use sophisticated payment redirection techniques, as payment systems have guardrails in place to keep a check on such activities. These sites have fake information about the company and the executives that are part of it, also made up using AI.
Payment modes on such sites range from cryptocurrencies to credit cards and other popular payment gateways. Koltai also highlighted that social media platforms usually struggle to remove such content quickly.
When it comes to the legal and social implications, one of the experts, Yiota Souras, commented that AI-generated nude images of minors fall in a legally gray area. Souras, who is from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, revealed that some nude images may not even meet the federal definition of child pornography.
In a similar incident, another 14-year-old and her family struggled to get the images removed after they were posted on Snapchat. The images were eventually removed after the aggrieved parents reportedly made a phone call to US Senator from Texas Ted Cruz.
Cruz has introduced the Take It Down Act in the US Senate to enforce harsher penalties for perpetrators and tech companies if they do not remove such content.
Other potential solutions suggested by experts include strong penalties for sharing AI-generated nude images and laws making it obligatory for social media companies to remove photos within 48 hours after a takedown request.
The effect of such incidents
The incident also shows the adverse effects of such incidents on underage children. Emphasising the psychological impacts, Souras said that victims of such incidents suffer from humiliation, mental health distress, reputational harm, and overall loss of confidence and trust.
The 14-year-old girl who appeared with her mother on a news broadcast urged schools to implement firm AI-related policies. She also asked educators to work with Congress to pass federal bills in order to protect victims and raise awareness about the perils of nudify sites.
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