Urgent Call to Ban AI Tools Producing Child Sexual Abuse Material

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Child safety advocates, led by former Australian of the Year Grace Tame, are demanding swift action to outlaw artificial intelligence (AI) tools generating child sexual abuse material (CSAM). Meeting at Parliament House, they argue that the Labor government’s slow response fails to protect children from the rising tide of AI-generated abuse content. This article explores the urgent need for legislation to criminalize these tools and bolster online safety.

The proliferation of AI-generated CSAM, including hyper-realistic images and videos, poses a grave threat to child safety. The International Centre for Missing and Exploited Children (ICMEC), hosting the parliamentary roundtable, pushes for laws criminalizing the possession and distribution of AI tools designed to create CSAM. The Internet Watch Foundation (IWF) reported a 400% surge in such content in 2024, with 1,286 AI-made videos identified, many classified as Category A, the most severe form of abuse. Grace Tame, speaking to ABC News, criticized the government’s sluggish pace, stating, “The current government hasn’t acted swiftly enough on child safety online”. This delay allows predators to exploit tools like Stable Diffusion to produce explicit content, often targeting real or fictional minors.

The impact of AI-generated CSAM extends beyond its creation. It overwhelms law enforcement, diverting resources from real victims, and fuels sextortion, causing severe psychological harm like depression and shame. The United Kingdom has already criminalized these tools, a model Australia could follow. Attorney-General Michelle Rowland called the use of AI for CSAM “sickening,” pledging to explore stronger regulations, but critics argue Labor’s focus on broad online safety laws lacks urgency. Posts on X echo this frustration, with users highlighting AI’s role in enabling predators to create “lifelike” abuse content undetected.

Advocates also see potential in using AI positively, such as detecting grooming behavior, but privacy concerns, like those raised in the 2021 Clearview AI ruling, limit police use of such tools. Criminalizing AI tools designed for CSAM, as proposed by ICMEC, could close legal loopholes and deter offenders. With Australia lagging behind global efforts, the pressure is on to act decisively to protect children from this digital scourge.