A Spanish court has reportedly penalized 15 teens after being charged for creating nude artificial intelligence-generated images of two of their female classmates and spreading them in a group on WhatsApp.
The court sentenced the youngsters to serve one year of probation and to take seminars on gender equality and the proper use of information and communication technology. The juveniles were accused with 20 charges of making child sex abuse photos and 20 counts of violating their victims' moral integrity.
Police began looking into the case last year when parents in the Extremaduran town of Almendralejo claimed that phony naked photos of their daughters were being spread on WhatsApp. The mother of one of the victims said that the images had been circulated on the messaging platform since July.
Police identified several youngsters aged 13 to 15 as responsible for creating and spreading the photographs.
Under Spanish law, minors under the age of 14 are not prosecuted, but their proceedings are sent to child protection agencies, which may require them to participate in rehabilitation courses.
The Malvaluna Association, representing the injured families, stated that the case had far-reaching ramifications for Spanish society.
It stated that the case highlighted the importance of adequate sex education in schools so that children do not learn about sex via pornography, which promotes greater misogyny and violence.
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A Worldwide Concern on AI Nude Cases
The Spanish case is the latest case of the problematic tendencies of AI's capability to generate nude images of almost anyone. Just last April, London-based students were met with a nearly identical situation.
Pupils at St. Thomas Aquinas Catholic Secondary School began sharing images of other pupils who AI had transformed. According to school administrators, photos of children on social networking platforms have been manipulated with artificial intelligence to make them look naked.
As a result, London-based students advocated for artificial intelligence-centered education that focuses on avoiding fake nudes rather than merely exam cheating.
One of the pupils who claimed to have been victimized because of AI-generated images of themselves naked says she is ashamed of her classmates' actions, even if she is unaware of who the offenders are. The youngster describes it as "super frustrating," and they want others to believe it is not them, but it is still embarrassing even when they know it is not them.
The adolescent argued that while professors warn students against using artificial intelligence to cheat on tests and papers, they seldom explain the more creative and innovative ways it might be used. Griffin Gardner, a 15-year-old ninth-grader, said he had heard that female pupils in classes 9 and 11 were targeted.
Gardner claims he hasn't seen the photographs but knows others who have. He goes on to add that to prevent AI from becoming worse, the general public must understand more about it. He suggests that some spread it to get attention and make other youngsters uncomfortable.
AI Nudes in Australia
While in Australia, the first individual in his state to exploit AI-generated child abuse material was a Tasmanian guy. The 48-year-old man was convicted for collecting, distributing, and downloading hundreds of pieces of illicit AI-generated content.
After being arrested and charged, the Gravelly Beach man pleaded guilty on March 26, 2024, to having access to and possession of child abuse materials.
As part of a Tasmania Joint Anti-Child Exploitation Team (TAS-JACET) investigation, the Australian Federal Police allege that this is Tasmania's first conviction involving AI-generated content intended for child exploitation.
