{"meta":{"exportedAt":"2026-09-30T08:38:09.975Z","formatVersion":2,"selection":{"q":"ai-generated-images","system":"","harm":"","context":"","country":"","role":"","relation":"","evidence":"","year":"2026","response":"","severity":"","verification":"","view":"incidents","sort":"added"},"totalIncidents":2,"coverage":{"cases":2,"countries":1,"languages":2,"unknownLocation":1,"locationPending":0,"unknownLanguage":0,"unknownDate":0,"lawsuits":0,"regulatory":1,"minors":0,"coreRelations":1,"contextualRelations":0,"mixedRelations":0,"unknownRelations":1,"relationPending":0,"relationUnknown":1},"countingNote":"Distinct public cases in this selection. People counts apply within individual cases only; cross-case person overlap has not been resolved. No population incidence estimate.","affectedCountNote":"Interpret person counts with affectedCountStatus and the reported effects. Unquantified zeros are placeholders, not a measured zero.","source":"AI incidents","publisher":"NOPE","url":"https://nope.net/incidents","license":"CC BY 4.0"},"incidents":[{"id":"2026-uk-grok-sexualised-images-two-women-police-cases-closed-no-suspect-identified","caseFacts":{"claims":[{"id":"c1","status":"corroborated","evidence":[{"locator":"'Grok obliged, moulding her profile photo onto a nude body wrapped in see-through plastic'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"},{"locator":"'Grok, the platform’s AI chatbot, obliged by moulding her profile photo onto a nude body in see-through plastic'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"},{"locator":"'were created using the chatbot and shared without her consent'; 'after speaking out, she saw AI-generated images of herself had been created without her consent'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s3"}],"assertion":"Explicit or sexualised images of the presenter were generated with Grok at anonymous X users' request and posted on X without her consent around New Year 2026, after she had publicly criticised Grok.","causal_attribution":"The presenter's account to TBIJ/The Observer and, separately, to BBC Wales in January 2026; TBIJ inspected the requesting account."},{"id":"c2","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'After reporting her case to South Wales Police on 2 January'; 'wasn’t invited to give a statement until March'; 'Her case was closed after the police requests to X went unanswered'; 'Despite the efforts of investigators, no suspect could be identified'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"},{"locator":"'the investigation was closed in May'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"}],"assertion":"The presenter reported the image to South Wales Police on 2 January 2026; she was not asked for a statement until March, police requests to X went unanswered, and the case was closed (in May, per The Observer) with the force saying no suspect could be identified.","causal_attribution":"TBIJ's account from messages it saw and the presenter; South Wales Police's statement confirms an investigation and no identified suspect but does not address the X requests."},{"id":"c3","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'about 300 images and videos of her posted during the Grok scandal'; 'the last of which was dealt with by the Metropolitan Police'; 'She reported several anonymous posts to the police'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"},{"locator":"'after exploring all viable lines of enquiry, no suspect could be identified'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"}],"assertion":"The broadcaster estimates about 300 Grok-made images and videos of her were posted during the wave, including by the account that targeted the presenter; she reported several, one involving Jeffrey Epstein to the Metropolitan Police, which said no suspect could be identified.","causal_attribution":"The broadcaster's estimate and the Met's statement, both via the TBIJ/Observer investigation."},{"id":"c4","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'is now in pre-action legal correspondence with xAI, part of SpaceXAI, alleging misuse of her private information'; 'It has not been possible, in the time available, to look into any communications with South Wales Police'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"},{"locator":"'is now in pre-action legal correspondence with SpacexAI'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"}],"assertion":"The presenter is in pre-action legal correspondence with xAI (SpaceXAI) alleging misuse of private information and breaches of data-protection law and the Equality Act; the company said it had not been possible in the time available to look into its communications with South Wales Police.","causal_attribution":"Reported from the correspondence described by TBIJ and the presenter's lawyer; no claim has been filed."}],"effects":[{"label":"a sexualised image of her generated by Grok from her profile photo at an anonymous user's request and posted on X","claim_id":"c1","direction":"negative"},{"label":"about 300 Grok-made images and videos of her posted to humiliate her","claim_id":"c3","direction":"negative"},{"label":"police investigations closed with no suspect identified after X did not answer information requests","claim_id":"c2","direction":"negative"}],"sources":[{"id":"s1","url":"https://www.thebureauinvestigates.com/stories/2026-09-29/grok-deepfakes-police-justice","kind":"investigative_report","access":"read","language":"en","translation_note":"Read live in English on 2026-09-30 (TBIJ, 29 September 2026, by Lydia Morrish); the original investigation, with police and company statements.","independence_group":"tbij-observer-investigation"},{"id":"s2","url":"https://observer.co.uk/news/national/article/the-women-taking-on-the-tech-giants-over-deepfakes-and-digital-abuse","kind":"news_report","access":"read","language":"en","translation_note":"Read live in English on 2026-09-30 (The Observer, 29 September 2026, same reporter, published in partnership with TBIJ); adds the May closure date.","independence_group":"tbij-observer-investigation"},{"id":"s3","url":"https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c98p4214577o","kind":"news_report","access":"read","language":"en","translation_note":"Read live in English on 2026-09-30 (BBC Wales, 13 January 2026, updated 14 January); interview with the presenter during the wave.","independence_group":"bbc-wales-january-2026"}],"version":1,"ai_roles":["others_use"],"contexts":["privacy","justice","everyday_life"],"unknowns":["Who requested the images and where they were located.","Whether X answered any later police request.","Whether the presenter files a claim and its outcome.","Dates of the individual images and videos of the broadcaster; The Observer places them 'during the Grok scandal over Christmas', so the series may have begun in late December 2025, before the presenter's dated 2 January 2026 report."],"geography":{"basis":"The presenter reported to South Wales Police and is described by TBIJ in her bedroom in Wales; the broadcaster reported to the Metropolitan Police (TBIJ). The images were generated on X at the request of anonymous accounts whose locations are not established (TBIJ says some accounts in the cases it examined were clearly UK-based), so no event country is recorded. No court proceeding yet.","court_countries":[],"event_countries":[],"affected_person_countries":["GB"]},"publication":{"basis":"Published under the 2026-09-15 charter as a core case (Grok-generated sexualised images of two adult public figures, requested by anonymous users, with police investigations closed without a suspect). Both women spoke on the record to TBIJ and The Observer; the presenter also to BBC Wales in January 2026. The images are not reproduced or described beyond the sources' wording.","reviewed_on":"2026-09-30"},"ai_involvement":{"basis":"TBIJ inspected the X account and posts that requested the images and describes Grok's automatic public reply; The presenter described the image to TBIJ and, in January 2026, to BBC Wales; South Wales Police and the Metropolitan Police confirm investigations into the reports. Grok's role in generating and posting the images is not disputed by any party quoted; xAI did not respond to TBIJ.","status":"supported"},"person_relations":["depicted_or_impersonated"]},"name":"UK: Grok-made sexualised images of a Welsh presenter and campaigner against deepfake abuse and of a commentator and broadcaster, requested by anonymous X accounts around New Year 2026; South Wales Police and the Metropolitan Police closed their investigations without identifying a suspect after X did not answer information requests; the presenter is in pre-action correspondence with xAI","summary":"The Bureau of Investigative Journalism and The Observer reported on 29 September 2026 that police investigations into sexualised images generated by X's chatbot Grok had failed to identify anyone. A Welsh presenter and campaigner against deepfake abuse, who had criticised Grok publicly on New Year's Eve 2025, saw an anonymous X user ask '@grok' to put her in a bikini made of cling film; Grok generated the image from her profile photo and posted it. She reported it to South Wales Police on 2 January 2026, was not asked for a statement until March, and was told officers had not heard back from X; the case was closed (in May, per The Observer) with the force saying no suspect could be identified. The same account also targeted a commentator and broadcaster, who estimates about 300 Grok images and videos of her were posted during the wave, including one alongside Jeffrey Epstein reported to the Metropolitan Police, which likewise said no suspect could be identified. The presenter is now in pre-action legal correspondence with xAI (part of SpaceXAI) alleging misuse of private information and breaches of data-protection law and the Equality Act; the company told her lawyers it had not been possible in the time available to look into its communications with South Wales Police. BBC Wales had reported in January 2026 that explicit images of the presenter were created with the chatbot and shared without her consent.","incidentDate":"2026-01-02","incidentKind":"bounded_series","incidentDatePrecision":"day","exposurePattern":"unknown","reportedDate":"2026-01-13","aiSystem":"Grok (xAI) image generation on X, responding to public '@grok' requests by editing the targeted women's photographs and posting the results","aiProduct":"Grok","aiCompany":"xAI (SpaceXAI)","severity":"medium","verificationStatus":"credible","harmCategories":[],"harmOutcomes":["exploitation_or_abuse","psychological_distress"],"harmOutcomeSummary":"Two women, a presenter and campaigner and a broadcaster, had sexualised images of themselves generated by Grok at anonymous users' request and posted on X; the presenter calls the experience terrifying and her lawyers say the company's failure to help the police aggravated her distress; the broadcaster says the images were designed to humiliate her; both police investigations closed without a suspect after X did not answer requests (TBIJ; The Observer; BBC Wales).","frameworkFacets":[],"causationStatus":"supported","participantUsersAffectedMin":0,"otherPeopleHarmedMin":2,"affectedCountStatus":"exact","affectedCountEvidence":"Two depicted people, a presenter and campaigner and a commentator and broadcaster (TBIJ; The Observer). The MP also interviewed by TBIJ is counted in her own case (2026-asato-v-xai-grok). Exact 2.","victimAgeRange":"adult","jurisdiction":"GB","platformType":"other","outcomeType":"investigation_opened","outcomeStatus":"ongoing","primarySourceUrl":"https://www.thebureauinvestigates.com/stories/2026-09-29/grok-deepfakes-police-justice","primarySourceLabel":"The Bureau of Investigative Journalism, 29 September 2026: Failed by the police, Grok deepfake victims are seeking justice themselves","firstPublishedAt":"2026-09-30T04:13:49.631225+00:00","updatedAt":"2026-09-30T04:13:49.631225+00:00","scopeVersion":"facts-v3","tags":["grok","xai","x-twitter","deepfakes","non-consensual-intimate-images","ai-generated-images","police","south-wales-police","metropolitan-police","ofcom","uk","depicted-or-impersonated"]},{"id":"2026-chiang-mai-airport-woman-66-ai-generated-pilot-persona-facebook","caseFacts":{"claims":[{"id":"c1","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'เข้าช่วยเหลือคุณยายวัย 66 ปี ชาว จ.ลำปาง หลังเดินทางมาคนเดียวเพื่อรอพบชายชื่อ “ชัย” ซึ่งอ้างว่าเป็นนักบิน'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"},{"locator":"'จะมาพบคนชื่อชัย เป็นนักบินที่สนามบินเชียงใหม่'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"},{"locator":"'พบผู้สูงอายุเดินทางมาเพียงลำพังเพื่อรอพบชายชื่อ \"ชัย\" ซึ่งอ้างว่าเป็นนักบิน'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s3"}],"assertion":"On the evening of 16 September 2026 a 66-year-old woman from Lampang was found waiting alone at Chiang Mai airport for a man called 'Chai' who she said was a pilot, having travelled by bus and tuk-tuk to meet him.","causal_attribution":"Chiang Mai Tourist Police account, relayed by several outlets."},{"id":"c2","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'คุณยายหลงรักตัวละครที่สร้างจากระบบปัญญาประดิษฐ์ (AI) บน Facebook และเข้าใจว่ามีตัวตนอยู่จริง'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"},{"locator":"'เมื่อเจ้าหน้าที่ขอดูภาพบุคคลปรากฏเป็นภาพ AI ใน facebook จึงขอให้ตำรวจท่องเที่ยวช่วยประสานญาติ'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"},{"locator":"'ได้เสพสื่อโซเชียลมีเดียบน Facebook จนเกิดความหลงรักตัวละครที่สร้างจากระบบปัญญาประดิษฐ์ (AI) และเข้าใจผิดคิดว่ามีตัวตนอยู่จริง'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s3"},{"locator":"'เมื่อเจ้าหน้าที่ตรวจสอบรูปภาพกลับพบว่าเป็นภาพ AI'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s4"}],"assertion":"When officers looked at the man's picture it was an AI-generated image on Facebook; police concluded she had fallen in love with an AI-created character and believed it was a real person.","causal_attribution":"Police assessment on inspecting the picture; who operated the account is not reported."},{"id":"c3","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'เจ้าหน้าที่เร่งประสานบุตรชาย หลังครอบครัวไม่ทราบว่าคุณยายเดินทางออกนอกพื้นที่'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"},{"locator":"'ทางตำรวจท่องเที่ยวเชียงใหม่จึงได้โทรไปบอก ซึ่งไม่ทราบว่าแม่เดินทางมาเชียงใหม่'; 'เช้าวันนี้ ( 17 กันยายน 69 ) ทางเจ้าหน้าที่ได้พาคุณยายนั่งส่งรถแท็กซี่เพื่อไปยังอาเขต'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"},{"locator":"'ผู้สูงอายุใช้ภาษาชนเผ่าเป็นหลักและพูดจาสับสน'; 'ก่อนจะอำนวยความสะดวกประสานงานส่งตัวกลับภูมิลำเนาอย่างปลอดภัยในวันรุ่งขึ้น'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s3"}],"assertion":"Communication was difficult because she mainly speaks a hill-tribe language and was confused; police reached her son, who had not known she had left; she stayed overnight in the terminal and was sent home by bus on the morning of 17 September.","causal_attribution":"Police account."},{"id":"c4","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'รู้จักกับนายชัยผ่านเฟซบุ๊ก ซึ่งอ้างตัวเป็นนักบินประจำสนามบินเชียงใหม่ และหลอกว่าจะนำเครื่องสำอางจากต่างประเทศมาฝาก'; 'เจ้าหน้าที่คาดว่าอาจตกเป็นเหยื่อของแก๊งสแกมเมอร์'; 'สังเกตเห็นภรรยาพูดคุยโทรศัพท์เป็นเวลานานอยู่บ่อยครั้ง และล่าสุดภรรยาบอกว่าจะเดินทางไปพบแพทย์ที่โรงพยาบาลใน จ.เชียงใหม่'; 'จะเร่งตรวจสอบข้อมูลโทรศัพท์ บัญชีเฟซบุ๊ก และประวัติการติดต่อทั้งหมด'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s5"}],"assertion":"Kom Chad Luek reports that she had come to know 'Chai' through Facebook, that he claimed to be a pilot based at Chiang Mai airport and said he would bring her cosmetics from abroad, that officials thought she might be a scammer gang's target, that her husband had noticed her long phone conversations and had been told she was going to a hospital appointment in Chiang Mai, and that her son said he would check her phone, Facebook account and contact history.","causal_attribution":"Kom Chad Luek's own reporting from the family home; the husband's and son's statements."}],"effects":[{"label":"deceived by an AI-generated 'pilot' persona into a lone cross-province journey and stranded overnight at an airport","claim_id":"c2","direction":"negative"}],"sources":[{"id":"s1","url":"https://www.matichon.co.th/local/news_5892707","kind":"news_report","access":"read","language":"th","translation_note":"Read live in Thai on 2026-09-30 (Matichon, 17 September 2026); relays the Chiang Mai Tourist Police account. Researcher translation.","independence_group":"chiang-mai-tourist-police"},{"id":"s2","url":"https://www.amarintv.com/news/social/557772","kind":"news_report","access":"read","language":"th","translation_note":"Read live in Thai on 2026-09-30 (Amarin TV, 17 September 2026); names the reporting Tourist Police officer and adds the son's call and the return arrangements. Researcher translation.","independence_group":"chiang-mai-tourist-police"},{"id":"s3","url":"https://today.line.me/th/v3/article/7Nvkp2Q","kind":"police_social_post_relay","access":"read","language":"th","translation_note":"Read live in Thai on 2026-09-30: the Chiang Mai Tourist Police post as republished by FM91 on LINE Today, 17 September 2026. Researcher translation.","independence_group":"chiang-mai-tourist-police"},{"id":"s4","url":"https://www.thaipbs.or.th/program/WanmaiThaiPBS/watch/288401","kind":"broadcaster_programme_page","access":"read","language":"th","translation_note":"Read live in Thai on 2026-09-30: Thai PBS morning-programme page for 18 September 2026 with a written summary of the segment; the video was not watched. Researcher translation.","independence_group":"chiang-mai-tourist-police"},{"id":"s5","url":"https://www.komchadluek.net/news/crime/622937","kind":"news_report","access":"read","language":"th","translation_note":"Read live in Thai on 2026-09-30 (Kom Chad Luek, 17 September 2026, crime desk): the Tourist Police account plus the husband's and son's comments at the family home in Lampang. The woman, her son, her ethnic group and her district are named there and withheld here. Researcher translation.","independence_group":"komchadluek-family-interview"}],"version":1,"ai_roles":["others_use"],"contexts":["relationships","everyday_life"],"unknowns":["Who operated the Facebook account and whether the messages and phone conversations came from a person or an automated system; Kom Chad Luek describes a man, Siam Blockchain's headline calls the chat partner AI, and the police described only the picture as AI.","Whether any money or gifts were requested or sent.","Whether a complaint was filed about the account."],"geography":{"basis":"She was found at Chiang Mai International Airport, Thailand, having travelled from Lampang province, where she lives (Matichon; Amarin TV). No court is involved.","court_countries":[],"event_countries":["TH"],"affected_person_countries":["TH"]},"publication":{"basis":"Published under the 2026-09-15 charter as an adverse everyday experience involving an AI-generated persona (an elderly woman deceived into a lone journey and stranded overnight); the AI system's relation to her is unknown. The account is the Chiang Mai Tourist Police's, relayed by Thai outlets. Her name, district and ethnic group are withheld.","reviewed_on":"2026-09-30"},"ai_involvement":{"basis":"Chiang Mai Tourist Police say the picture of the man she came to meet was an AI-generated image on Facebook and that she had fallen for an AI-created character (Matichon; Amarin TV; the police post via FM91; Thai PBS). Kom Chad Luek's own report describes a man claiming to be a pilot and does not mention AI. No forensic analysis is reported and the account was not identified. Thai PBS says she talked with a man claiming to be a pilot, and her husband describes long phone conversations (Kom Chad Luek), so she was in two-way contact with someone; no source establishes whether that was a person using the image or an automated account, so the relation is recorded as unknown.","status":"reported"},"person_relations":["unknown"]},"name":"Chiang Mai, Thailand: a 66-year-old woman from Lampang travelled alone to Chiang Mai airport on 16 September 2026 to meet a 'pilot' she had fallen for on Facebook; tourist police found his picture was AI-generated, contacted her son and sent her home the next morning","summary":"At about 8 pm on 16 September 2026, airport security and Chiang Mai Tourist Police found a 66-year-old woman from Lampang province waiting alone in the passenger terminal of Chiang Mai airport for a man called 'Chai', who she said was a pilot she had come to meet. She had travelled by bus from Lampang and taken a tuk-tuk to the airport. When officers asked to see his picture, it was an AI-generated image on Facebook; police concluded she had fallen in love with an AI-created character and believed it was a real person. Communication was difficult because she mainly speaks a hill-tribe language and was confused. Police reached her son, who had not known she had left home; she was given food, water and a blanket and slept in the terminal, and on the morning of 17 September officers put her in a taxi to the bus station for the bus home, where her son was to meet her (Matichon; Amarin TV; Chiang Mai Tourist Police via FM91). Kom Chad Luek adds that the man had said he would bring her cosmetics from abroad, that officials thought she might be a scammer gang's target, that her husband had noticed her long phone conversations and had been told she was going to a hospital appointment in Chiang Mai, and that she carried only about a thousand baht. No financial loss is reported.","incidentDate":"2026-09-16","incidentEndDate":"2026-09-17","incidentKind":"bounded_series","incidentDatePrecision":"day","exposurePattern":"unknown","reportedDate":"2026-09-17","aiSystem":"AI-generated images of a fictitious 'pilot' on a Facebook profile (per Chiang Mai Tourist Police); whether she exchanged messages with a person or an automated account is not reported","aiProduct":"Unidentified image tool","severity":"low","verificationStatus":"credible","harmCategories":[],"harmOutcomes":["other_material_harm"],"harmOutcomeSummary":"An elderly woman was deceived by an AI-generated 'pilot' persona on Facebook into a lone cross-province journey, waited in vain at an airport and was stranded overnight until police contacted her family (Chiang Mai Tourist Police via Matichon, Amarin TV and FM91).","frameworkFacets":[],"causationStatus":"alleged","participantUsersAffectedMin":0,"otherPeopleHarmedMin":1,"affectedCountStatus":"exact","affectedCountEvidence":"One person, the 66-year-old woman (Matichon; Amarin TV). Exact 1.","victimAgeRange":"elderly","jurisdiction":"TH","platformType":"other","outcomeType":"media_coverage","outcomeStatus":"resolved","primarySourceUrl":"https://www.matichon.co.th/local/news_5892707","primarySourceLabel":"มติชน (Matichon), 17 September 2026: หญิงวัย 66 ปี นั่งรถข้ามจว. ตามเสียงหัวใจ รอเจอ ‘หนุ่มนักบิน’ ก่อนพบความจริง ตกหลุมรัก AI","firstPublishedAt":"2026-09-30T04:13:42.313455+00:00","updatedAt":"2026-09-30T04:13:42.313455+00:00","scopeVersion":"facts-v3","tags":["ai-generated-images","fake-persona","romance-scam","elderly","facebook","thailand","chiang-mai","tourist-police"]}]}