More than a month following the global shock caused by AI-generated images of Spanish schoolgirls circulating on the internet, the mother of one victim has spoken out.
Miriam Al Adib, whose daughter was one of the many underage victims in the scandal involving fake nude images, reveals that hundreds of parents have informed her that their children were also victims.
Speaking to Wales Live, Al Adib emphasized that the combination of access to social media, pornography, and artificial intelligence has become a “weapon of destruction.”
In September, Al Adib’s hometown, the small Spanish village of Almendralejo, gained notoriety after over 20 underage girls, ranging in age from 11 to 17, became victims of an offense involving indecent images that were shared online without their knowledge.
These images were created using an Artificial Intelligence (AI) application called ClothOff. This app allows users to virtually ‘remove clothes’ from anyone in a photo. For just €10 (around $11), people can generate 25 such fake nude images.
Al Adib, whose 14-year-old daughter was among the victims, described how her distraught daughter revealed the incident to her.
“When I came home, one of my daughters, who was really upset, told me: ‘look what they did.’ It turns out they took a photo of her and used artificial intelligence to make it appear as if she was naked.”
Support group emerges Al Adib initially shared the entire incident on Instagram, where she has thousands of followers. More than a month later, she has disclosed that a support group created by her and a few other parents revealed that such deep fake porn incidents are not uncommon.
“Hundreds of people have written to me, saying, ‘you have been lucky (for the support you received) because the same thing happened to us, my daughter, or me, and we didn’t have any support,” she told Wales Live.
“If any girl is affected, please tell your parents.”
She mentioned that the support group encouraged many other victims in Almendralejo to come forward.
“This helped many girls come forward to also share what happened to them. It’s important to know because many girls are unable or afraid to discuss this with their parents.”
AI: Friend or Foe? AI has been in the headlines for over a year, bringing both numerous advantages and significant drawbacks. Deep fakes top the list of concerns.
Recently, in India, popular actress Rashmika Mandanna fell victim to AI-generated deep fakes. A manipulated video imposed Rashmika’s face onto another woman’s video, which subsequently went viral. The original video depicted the woman wearing a low-cut outfit and posing for a photo.
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