Fake Nudes of Real Students Cause an Uproar at a New Jersey High School

Wall Street Journal ^ | Nov. 2, 2023 7:00 am ET | By Julie Jargon

[Red Badger]

After boys shared faked pornographic images made of female classmates, both the school and the local police began investigating

When girls at Westfield High School in New Jersey found out boys were sharing nude photos of them in group chats, they were shocked, and not only because it was an invasion of privacy. The images weren’t real.

Students said one or more classmates used an online tool powered by artificial intelligence to make the images, then shared them with others. The discovery has sparked uproar in Westfield, an affluent town outside New York City.

Digitally altered or faked images and videos have exploded along with the availability of free or cheap AI tools. While celebrity likenesses from Oprah Winfrey to Pope Francis have drawn media attention, the overwhelming majority of faked images are pornographic, experts say.

The lack of clarity on such images’ legality—and how or whether to punish their makers—has parents, schools and law enforcement running to catch up as AI speeds ahead.

The high school confirmed the incident in an email to parents, but a Westfield Public Schools spokeswoman declined to provide details on the number of students involved or to confirm whether any disciplinary action had been taken, citing student confidentiality.

Some Westfield parents said their daughters have felt humiliated and powerless, and worry about damage to the girls should the images surface later. And they are upset that no resolution is forthcoming.

Even among parents, there is no consensus. In a local Facebook group, some called for harsh punishment for whoever created the images. Others deemed it a youthful transgression that should be forgiven.

The debate and its aftermath are likely to continue for months. Westfield police are investigating, and a state senator has asked county prosecutors to look into the case.

[libertarian66]

So would my daughters be hurt. I’d tell them to get over it. Snowflakes shouldn’t make laws. It’s FAKE. It’s not real. You cannot be punished for fiction in a civilized society. This assumes it’s kept private. Public display as real might involve some sort of defamation civil issue.

[Paladin2]

But are they of high quality?

[Blue Highway]

AI child pornography will still be a 20 year to life crime

[Blue Highway]

Pierre delecto strikes again. He was ahead of the curve

[Drew68]

Because so many girls today WOULD do such a thing...that’s why it has legs.

There’s now AI OnlyFans accounts that are generating REAL money.

From the “Why didn’t I think of that?” File.

[Col Frank Slade]

So was Carlos Danger…

[zeestephen]

Re: AI + Flagrante

I am surprised that we do not already have animated porn stars.

Maybe they are already out there, and I just do not know about them?

[changeitback440]

this thread is worthless without pictures

[null and void]

Meta data will reveal AI

AI will generate convincing meta data...

[null and void]

Because so many girls today WOULD do such a thing...that’s why it has legs.

Legs, Ts and A...

[The Louiswu]

The boys were able to program AI to create the images because the girls facial images were all ready publicly available online, the rest if just a few lines of text and in seconds the young ladies faces were imaged onto, what I assume were realistic images of nude bodies.

I see some sort of illegal act here but I’m not sure just what that is. Writing a few lines of descriptive code?
Distribution of fake images? They’re not real nudes of the actual young women soooo what’s the big deal right? Just hurt feelings I guess
Can’t shut down AI now that it’s out of the bag and into the world, every big business is using AI in some form or soon will be.
Celebrity fakes are ALL OVER the web and it’s not like anybody cares, right?
Lastly, who to sue? The boys for writing some code, perhaps for sharing the images, maybe. Can’t sue the offshore server farm running the AI programs, and if we can’t shut down scammer calls centers with live people calling to try to steal our money how are we going to shut down a sever in who knows where.
Nope, AI is out of the bag now, and it might be used for good in some cases but almost every new type of computer tech has been used to generate PORN at some point, this is just another step.

[Boogieman]

No, because “AI child pornography” is not legally child pornography. The courts have already ruled against that notion.

[The Louiswu]

“ animated porn stars.”
There already are, I’m assuming you mean more realistic than say cartoons, well those are coming very soon.

[null and void]

There are already AI pictures of every major female celebrity that you can think of.

Please, no Helen Thomas!

[Boogieman]

“Does child pornography have to be of real children?”

Yes.

“If someone produces “humane” child porn, all AI, no actual children harmed, is that legal?”

Yes, it’s legal, or at least it is not illegal as “child pornography”. Might still be argued to be “obscene”, but nobody can say whether or not something is obscene, because that is entirely up to some judge’s whim.

“What about the faces of real children, on AI bodies?”

Legal. Might be liable for a lawsuit, but it’s not criminal.

[Boogieman]

“The law still prohibits fake child porn and prosecutes it as such.”

What law? The Supreme Court has already ruled otherwise:

https://www.rcfp.org/supreme-court-strikes-down-portions-virtual-child-porn-law/

[Fury]

Re: 95 - Legal. Might be liable for a lawsuit, but it’s not criminal.

I believe you are probably correct.

But it’s okay to make a judgment that anyone creating fake child porn is perverted and should be shunned in the community.

[T.B. Yoits]

Appropriating a person’s likeness could easily be a tort...

Elaine from 'Seinfeld' and the mannequin that looked like her:

[mmichaels1970]

And the AI tech to generate fairly convincing live action video is improving quickly.

That's what I'm getting at. Soon, AI will be able to approximate an entire body with movements and create porn videos of anybody the user wants to.

I'm fortunate enough that nobody in their right mind would ever want to do that to ME. But other better-looking folks won't be so lucky.

[The Louiswu]

This is an AI produced image. The girl nor the dress or setting are real, they are lines of code in an AI program. It would only take a few more lines of code to undress this image and perhaps even put it into lewd poses.