AI-Enabled Crime: The Dark Side of Generative Artificial Intelligence

UNITED STATES (trfnews.i234.me) – In a chilling development, generative artificial intelligence (AI) has enabled twisted new crimes that can happen anywhere. This was recently demonstrated in the case of 41-year-old child psychiatrist David Tatum who was sentenced to 40 years in prison on child pornography charges last November. The FBI is now warning about AI-generated images and their potential implications for future criminal activities.

At Tatum’s sentencing, his multiple victims stood up in court and read statements describing how they felt victimized by the doctor’s actions. One woman, now in her 40s, said she became a victim of child pornography due to Tatum’s use of AI technology. In 2023, Tatum was found guilty of producing, transporting, and possessing images and videos of child pornography, including secret recordings he made of minor girls undressing and showering between July of 2016 and 2021.

Tatum also used generative AI to alter clothed images of minors into child pornography digitally. FBI Charlotte special agents Scott Alt Atwood and Brown, who led the investigation into Tatum’s case, said the AI-generated images were extremely realistic. They prioritized determining how and where these images were produced and if they were generated using a real person.

One victim discovered that her cherished memory from two decades ago was turned into a new traumatic experience by Tatum. This case marked the first of its kind in the Western District of North Carolina, with federal prosecutors able to charge Tatum for possession of child pornography related to AI-generated images because these images were based on real minors and met the federal threshold for being sexually explicit.

This development highlights the dark side of generative artificial intelligence and its potential to enable twisted new crimes that can happen anywhere, leaving law enforcement agencies scrambling to catch up with this rapidly evolving technology. The FBI’s warning serves as a stark reminder of the need for continued vigilance in addressing these emerging threats.

I’m Neil Berg reporting for trfnews.i234.me