The UK’s safeguarding minister has urged law enforcement to vigorously pursue individuals who utilize Elon Musk’s Grok to produce harmful deepfake images of children.
Jess Phillips expressed her concerns to The Mirror, emphasizing that Musk’s platform, Grok, should not evade responsibility amidst growing outrage over the issue. Grok’s artificial intelligence tool has faced criticism for generating manipulated images of individuals, including minors, without their consent.
Phillips strongly condemned such capabilities, highlighting the detrimental impact on lives due to exploitation. Recently, Grok, previously known as Twitter, announced that deepfake creation would become a “premium service” limited to paying users. Phillips criticized this move as inadequate.
She emphasized the need for relentless police action against those behind the creation and distribution of such disturbing AI-generated images. Phillips called for a complete ban on tools that enable the production of degrading non-consensual content, urging X to cooperate with regulators to ensure compliance with the law.
Phillips stressed that social media platforms have a legal obligation to promptly remove such content, warning of substantial fines by regulator Ofcom for non-compliance. She underscored the seriousness of child sexual abuse and the legal repercussions for creating or disseminating AI-generated abusive images.
Notable figures like Maya Jama have demanded an end to the platform’s creation of such images. Proposed legislation by the Government aims to criminalize the creation, possession, and distribution of harmful AI-generated images of children, potentially resulting in up to five years of imprisonment.
Labour’s strategy against violence towards women and girls commits to outlawing apps that produce deepfake images without consent, further reinforcing the stance against such harmful practices.
Phillips revealed that legislative measures are being expedited to criminalize the creation of intimate deepfake images without consent using tools like Grok. She called on X and other platforms to take decisive action, warning of interventions if they fail to address the issue.
Ofcom recently raised concerns with X and xAI regarding Grok’s creation of sexualized images of children, emphasizing the need for urgent rectification of safeguards. A statement from Grok acknowledged the lapses in protections and pledged to address them promptly, reiterating the prohibition of child sexual abuse material.
Musk affirmed that individuals producing illegal content using Grok would face consequences similar to uploading illegal material, emphasizing a zero-tolerance approach to such activities.