TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WCTV) – Detectives with the Leon County Sheriff’s Office say they’re seeing a recent uptick in the use of artificial intelligence (AI) to commit crimes.
Over the past few months, investigators say they’ve received more cyber tips from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, which monitors online activity. They say this is expected to continue as the use of artificial intelligence grows.
Detective Shae Campbell with LCSO’s Internet Crimes Against Children Unit says they’re seeing people, including teens, using AI systems themselves to create illegal content. She says that includes child sex abuse material.
Just this week, an 18-year-old was arrested after allegedly possessing both “AI-generated and actual child sexual abuse material, as well as animal sexual abuse material,” according to LCSO.
Campbell says some people believe that asking AI software to create images removes responsibility, but investigators say that’s not the case.
“People tend to abuse it, and I think it’s because they think, well, I’m telling something else to do it, so they don’t think that they’ll get in trouble for it, but realistically, you’re controlling something, it’s the same as if you’re driving a car,” Campbell said. “It’s always monitored, and if you’re doing something you’re not supposed to, we’ll find out.”
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Campbell says it’s important for parents to talk with their kids about how to properly use AI platforms and to avoid asking systems to create inappropriate or illegal material.
“I would just communicate with your kids, just make sure you know if they’re saying, ‘oh I’ll just use ChatGPT, or just do this on ChatGPT,’ you know just have the conversation of hey make sure you’re not doing anything you know you’re not supposed to, you know don’t ask it anything inappropriate, don’t try to create anything you know might get you in trouble,” Campbell said.
She also says that while AI tools can generate nearly anything, there are still ways investigators can tell if something is AI-generated. Many platforms include watermarks or identifying markers that help determine whether an image came from a device or was created using AI.
When it comes to filing charges, Campbell says cases involving AI-generated criminal content are still fairly new. Investigators must prove a person knew they had illegal material, whether through their accounts or by working with companies to track activity.
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