The FBI has recently charged a U.S. man for allegedly producing over 13,000 se*ually explicit and abusive AI-generated images of children. The accused man used the Stable Diffusion model for his deviant creations, and he’s now facing up to 70 years in prison with a mandatory minimum of five years.
According to a press release from the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) on Monday, 42-year-old Steven Anderegg from Holmen, Wisconsin, is accused of creating thousands of “hyper-realistic images of nude and semi-clothed prepubescent children” through generative AI. The charges against him include four counts of creating, distributing, and possessing child se*ual abuse material, as well as sending explicit material to a minor under 16.
“Technology may change, but our commitment to protecting children will not,” stated Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco. She emphasized the DOJ’s determination to pursue those who produce and distribute child se*ual abuse material (CSAM), regardless of the method used to create it. “Put simply, CSAM generated by AI is still CSAM, and we will hold accountable those who exploit AI to create obscene, abusive, and increasingly photorealistic images of children.”
The investigation
The FBI initiated an investigation after the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC) received two reports last year about Anderegg’s Instagram account. This led law enforcement to monitor his activity, collect information from Instagram, and eventually secure a search warrant. Upon seizing his laptop, authorities discovered thousands of AI-generated images and evidence of using “extremely specific and explicit prompts” to create abusive material. Anderegg reportedly used the Stable Diffusion AI model to generate these images from text descriptions.
“Many of these images depicted nude or partially clothed minors lasciviously displaying or touching their genitals or engaging in se*ual intercourse with men,” the DOJ’s press release stated. Evidence recovered from Anderegg’s electronic devices revealed that he generated these images using specific, se*ually explicit text prompts related to minors, which he then stored on his computer.
The first-ever charge of this kind
According to 404 Media, Anderegg’s arrest is one of the first known instances where the FBI has charged someone for using AI to create CSAM. This case follows the arrest of two teenage boys in Miami, Florida, in March for allegedly making deepfake nude images of their high-school classmates, marking another unprecedented instance of criminal charges related to AI-generated nudes in the U.S.
The case against Anderegg underscores the growing concern over the misuse of AI technology and the challenges law enforcement faces in combating these crimes. It also highlights the need for careful monitoring and swift action to protect children from exploitation in the digital age.
[via PetaPixel]
