UNICEF urges criminalization of AI-created child sexual abuse images

UNICEF called for countries to criminalize the creation of AI-generated child sexual abuse content and urged developers and platforms to add safety-by-design and stronger moderation. The agency said at least 1.2 million children across 11 countries reported having images manipulated into sexually explicit deepfakes in the past year.

UNICEF on Wednesday urged countries to criminalize the creation of AI-generated child sexual abuse content and called for technical safeguards from developers and platforms. The agency said it was alarmed by reported increases in AI images that sexualize children and described the harm as real. It also raised concerns about AI altering clothing in photos to fabricate nude or sexualized images. Britain has announced plans to make it illegal to use AI tools to create such images, which Reuters reported as the first country to do so. Key reported facts: - UNICEF called for countries to criminalize AI-generated child sexual abuse content and urged safety-by-design and stronger moderation by developers and digital companies. - UNICEF reported that at least 1.2 million children across 11 countries disclosed having their images manipulated into sexually explicit deepfakes in the past year. - Britain said it plans to make using AI tools to create child sexual abuse images illegal, and a Reuters investigation reported concerns about chatbots producing sexualized images of minors. Summary: UNICEF framed the issue as a mismatch between rapidly advancing AI image tools and existing legal protections, and it urged both legal and technical responses. The agency provided a figure on reported manipulated images and called for companies to invest in detection and moderation. Britain has announced a legal approach; broader international responses and timelines are undetermined at this time.