What can be done about sexualised deepfake photos on X?
Grok AI on Elon Musk's X platform has recently enabled users to digitally undress people in photos. After thousands of posts with sexualised images of women and minors were published, authorities in several countries took action. X responded by limiting access to this feature to paying subscribers.
Legislation not keeping pace
A paywall is not the answer to dealing with AI-generated nude images argues The Spectator:
“[T]he laws governing this type of activity are struggling to catch up with what is happening to women online. Traditional laws protecting against non-consensual sexual images were built around the existence of an original photograph. AI circumvents this. It can generate a completely synthetic image using only publicly-available material – a face, a video, even a profile photo – and manipulate that image in a sexual manner. ... AI allows internet perverts to create their perfect fantasy with the click of a mouse – and there is nothing women can do to stop them.”
A paywall instead of protection
Musk has not prevented the creation of sexualised AI images, but instead he's turned it into a business model, Le Temps observes:
“[Digital] 'undressing' using AI hasn't gone away at all – it's just been shifted behind a paywall. This problematic trend hasn't been stopped; it's been monetised. Since Elon Musk took over the [X] network, this logic has become its trademark. He doesn't tackle the harmful effects of his platform – instead he organises them, allows them to flourish and then offers a temporary fix, which in turn becomes a product in itself. This means premium accounts get more freedom, while non-paying users face restrictions supposedly designed to 'improve security'. But in reality, it means those who pay benefit from these tools while those who don't suffer as a result.”
Shut down if necessary
The EU must take decisive action, demands the Frankfurter Rundschau:
“The European Commission has now toughened its stance towards Musk. That's good, but it's not enough. The violations of EU digital law are so blatant and the danger posed by X so great that the EU must act swiftly. Musk has made it clear often enough that he doesn't believe in rules. His chatbot has been out of control on multiple occasions, and his X platform is a threat to entire democracies. This must now come to an end – as a final consequence, by shutting down X in Europe.”