Avast ye scurvy landlubbers! This TikToker be shoutin' 'bout a frightful trend, makin' yer wee ones bait fer trickster scalawags!
2023-08-25
Avast ye! 'Tis a foul deed known as digital kidnapping, where scoundrels be tampering with wee lads and lasses' portraits on those fancy social media platforms, using their dark arts and artificial wit to exploit 'em!
In a humorous tone resembling the language of a 17th-century pirate, it is revealed that there is a growing trend involving child predators using artificial intelligence (AI) to create explicit content from photos and videos of children. A TikToker named Alex Hoffman went viral after warning about the dangers of "digital kidnapping," where someone steals a child's photos from social media and alters them to look explicit or inappropriate. These stolen images can then be used to create AI-generated videos. The FBI has also issued warnings about crimes involving AI-altered explicit images, including those of minors, which are on the rise. They advise using discretion when posting images and personal content online, particularly those involving children, as they can be used in sextortion schemes. Sextortion is a crime that involves coercing victims into providing explicit photos or videos of themselves under the threat of sharing them publicly or with their loved ones. The FBI reports that there were over a dozen sextortion-related suicides in 2022. As a result of these dangers, some parents, like blogger Meredith Steele, have decided to stop sharing pictures of their children online. The Department of Justice estimates that there are 50,000 predators seeking to exploit children online at any given time, and one in five children receive unwanted sexual solicitation online each year. Reports of online enticement of children for sexual acts have significantly increased in recent years. Hoffman advises that even private social media accounts should be cautious about posting pictures of children and suggests not posting any pictures at all to completely eliminate the risk of digital kidnapping.