{"meta":{"exportedAt":"2026-11-07T02:55:36.821Z","formatVersion":2,"selection":{"q":"arrest","system":"","harm":"","context":"","country":"","role":"","relation":"core","evidence":"","year":"2023","response":"","severity":"","verification":"","view":"incidents","sort":"added"},"totalIncidents":4,"coverage":{"cases":4,"countries":3,"languages":3,"unknownLocation":1,"locationPending":0,"unknownLanguage":0,"unknownDate":0,"lawsuits":0,"regulatory":0,"minors":1,"coreRelations":4,"contextualRelations":0,"mixedRelations":0,"unknownRelations":0,"relationPending":0,"relationUnknown":0},"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":"2023-anqing-anhui-police-say-nine-second-ai-face-swap-video-call-posing-as-acquaintance-cost-man-2-45-million-yuan","caseFacts":{"claims":[{"id":"c1","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'经开公安分局反诈中心民警调查发现，诈骗分子使用了一段9秒钟的智能AI换脸视频佯装“熟人”，让受害人放松警惕从而实施诈骗。'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"},{"locator":"'诈骗分子使用一段9秒钟的智能AI换脸视频佯装“熟人”，让受害人放松警惕被骗走245万元。'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"}],"assertion":"Officers of the Anqing economic development zone police anti-fraud centre found that the fraudsters used a nine-second AI face-swap video to pose as an acquaintance and lower the victim's guard.","causal_attribution":"Police finding attributing the deception to an AI face-swap video."},{"id":"c2","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'目前有一个项目招标需要周转资金' and '“因为打了视频电话又是熟人”，“我就没多想，就转账了”' and '立刻让家人将245万元到对方指定的账号上，直到事后拨打对方电话才得知被骗。'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"After the brief video call, the 'acquaintance' asked on QQ for money to be advanced for a project tender, and, trusting the video call, the victim had family members transfer 2.45 million yuan, learning of the fraud only when he later phoned the acquaintance.","causal_attribution":"The victim's account of why he paid, as reported."},{"id":"c3","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'于4月28日下午一举抓获' and '等3名犯罪嫌疑人，扣押涉案手机26部，冻结、追回电诈资金一百余万元。' and '5月22日，民警将先行追回的132万元被骗款返还给' and '目前，该案件正在进一步侦办中。'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"Police arrested three suspects on 28 April 2023, seized 26 phones, froze or recovered more than one million yuan, and on 22 May returned 1.32 million yuan to the victim; the case was still being investigated.","causal_attribution":"Police account of arrests and recovery."}],"effects":[{"label":"man transferred 2.45 million yuan after an AI face-swap video call posing as an acquaintance, according to police","claim_id":"c1","direction":"negative"}],"sources":[{"id":"s1","url":"https://www.secrss.com/articles/55024","kind":"news_report","access":"read","language":"zh","translation_note":"Read in Chinese on 2026-10-22 (HTTP 200). Republication of a Dawan News report (stated as from Dawan News), dated 25 May 2023. Translated from Chinese by the research agent (an AI); no human translation.","independence_group":"anqing-police-findings-dawan-news-may-2023"},{"id":"s2","url":"https://news.cnr.cn/native/gd/20230613/t20230613_526286531.shtml","kind":"news_report","access":"read","language":"zh","translation_note":"Read in Chinese on 2026-10-22 (HTTP 200; page encoded GBK). China National Radio summary, 13 June 2023, of the same case. Translated from Chinese by the research agent (an AI); no human translation.","independence_group":"anqing-police-findings-dawan-news-may-2023"}],"version":1,"ai_roles":["others_use"],"contexts":["finance","relationships"],"unknowns":["Which AI tool was used and how police established the face swap.","Whether the remaining money was recovered.","Whether the three suspects, who were suspected of moving proceeds, or anyone who made the video was charged or convicted.","How the acquaintance's WeChat identity was used."],"geography":{"basis":"Event: the case occurred in the Anqing economic development zone, Anhui, and was handled by its police sub-bureau (Dawan News; CNR). No court proceeding is reported.","court_countries":[],"event_countries":["CN"],"affected_person_countries":["CN"]},"publication":{"basis":"Published as a core case (communicated_with, depicted_or_impersonated): the investigating Anqing police anti-fraud centre found that a nine-second AI face-swap video posing as an acquaintance led a man to transfer 2.45 million yuan. The technical basis is not disclosed. The victim is not named.","reviewed_on":"2026-10-22"},"ai_involvement":{"basis":"The anti-fraud centre of the Anqing economic development zone police, which investigated the case and arrested three suspects, found that the fraudsters used a nine-second AI face-swap video to pose as the victim's acquaintance on the WeChat video call that preceded the payment (Dawan News via Secrss; CNR). The faked acquaintance appeared to the victim, and the same account then asked for money (depicted_or_impersonated, communicated_with). The police do not disclose how the face swap was established or which tool was used.","status":"reported"},"person_relations":["communicated_with","depicted_or_impersonated"]},"name":"Anqing, China: police say a nine-second AI face-swap video call posing as an acquaintance led a man to transfer 2.45 million yuan","summary":"In April 2023 a man in the Anqing economic development zone, Anhui, received a brief WeChat video call from someone who appeared to be an acquaintance, followed by a QQ message asking him to advance money for a tender; trusting the video call, he had family members transfer 2.45 million yuan. The local police anti-fraud centre found that the fraudsters had used a nine-second AI face-swap video to pose as the acquaintance, Dawan News reported. Police arrested three suspects on 28 April, froze or recovered more than one million yuan, and on 22 May returned 1.32 million yuan to the victim.","incidentDate":"2023-04-27","incidentKind":"single_event","incidentDatePrecision":"day","exposurePattern":"single_interaction","reportedDate":"2023-05-25","aiSystem":"A nine-second AI face-swap video used in a WeChat video call to impersonate an acquaintance, according to police (tool not identified)","aiProduct":"Unidentified video tool","severity":"high","verificationStatus":"credible","harmCategories":[],"harmOutcomes":["financial_loss"],"harmOutcomeSummary":"According to the police findings reported by Dawan News, a man transferred 2.45 million yuan after a nine-second AI face-swap video call posing as an acquaintance; 1.32 million yuan was later returned to him.","frameworkFacets":[],"pathwayDirection":"outward","causationStatus":"supported","participantUsersAffectedMin":0,"otherPeopleHarmedMin":1,"affectedCountStatus":"exact","affectedCountEvidence":"One person: the man who had 2.45 million yuan transferred after the call (Dawan News via Secrss). The impersonated acquaintance and the family members who made the transfer are not counted; no separate harm to them is reported.","victimAgeRange":"adult","jurisdiction":"CN","platformType":"other","outcomeType":"criminal_charges","outcomeStatus":"ongoing","primarySourceUrl":"https://www.secrss.com/articles/55024","primarySourceLabel":"Secrss (republishing Dawan News), 25 May 2023: Another AI face-swap fraud as Anhui man loses 2.45 million yuan in 9 seconds","firstPublishedAt":"2026-10-22T03:25:18.240597+00:00","updatedAt":"2026-10-22T03:25:18.240597+00:00","scopeVersion":"facts-v3","tags":["ai-face-swap","video-call-fraud","impersonation","wechat","china","police-arrests","depicted-or-impersonated"]},{"id":"2023-kozhikode-kerala-police-say-deepfake-video-call-of-former-colleague-cost-retired-man-rs-40000-five-arrested","caseFacts":{"claims":[{"id":"c1","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'According to police, the perpetrator used AI-powered face-swapping technology (deepfake) to impersonate a former colleague of' and 'the ‘former colleague’ (deepfake) to send money for the medical treatment of the latter’s sister.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"Kozhikode police said the perpetrator used AI-powered face-swapping technology (deepfake) to impersonate the victim's former colleague during a video call in which the 'former colleague' asked for money for a relative's medical treatment.","causal_attribution":"Police attribution of the impersonation to AI face-swapping, made after their investigation and arrests."},{"id":"c2","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'lost Rs 40,000 soon after receiving a video call from a person claiming to be his former senior colleague and seeking money for an emergency.' and 'the money that the elderly lost on July 9 was traced and the perpetrator’s account was blocked.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"}],"assertion":"The victim lost Rs 40,000 on 9 July 2023 after receiving a video call from a person claiming to be his former senior colleague who sought money for an emergency; cyber police traced the money and blocked the perpetrator's account.","causal_attribution":"The video call is the reported means of the deception."},{"id":"c3","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'The police suspect the scammers are using deep fake tech to fake people’s faces and voices.' and 'It may have been created using AI,'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"}],"assertion":"In July 2023 the police said they suspected the scammers used deepfake technology to fake faces and voices, and the cyber police station officer said the display picture may have been created using AI.","causal_attribution":"Early, hedged police view, superseded by the June 2024 account."},{"id":"c4","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'Kozhikode Police have made history by arresting an entire group involved in creating fake audio and video content to execute financial fraud using artificial intelligence.' and 'The squad successfully apprehended five suspects from their respective hometowns.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"Kozhikode police arrested five suspects from several states, describing a group that created fake audio and video content to execute financial fraud using artificial intelligence.","causal_attribution":"Police account of the arrests; no conviction is reported."}],"effects":[{"label":"retired man sent Rs 40,000 after a video call in which a deepfake impersonated a former colleague, according to police","claim_id":"c2","direction":"negative"}],"sources":[{"id":"s1","url":"https://english.mathrubhumi.com/news/crime/kozhikode-squad-arrest-five-in-connection-with-deepfake-fraud-67e25620","kind":"news_report","access":"read","language":"en","translation_note":"Read in English on 2026-10-22 (HTTP 200). Published 22 June 2024; reports the Kozhikode police account of the arrests.","independence_group":"kozhikode-police-arrests-jun-2024"},{"id":"s2","url":"https://www.newindianexpress.com/states/kerala/2023/Jul/17/scammers-use-deep-fake-tech-in-kerala-dupe-retired-union-govt-employee-of-rs-40000-2595588.html","kind":"news_report","access":"read","language":"en","translation_note":"Read in English on 2026-10-22 (HTTP 200). Published 17 July 2023; reports the victim's account and the cyber police station officer.","independence_group":"new-indian-express-victim-and-cyber-police-jul-2023"}],"version":1,"ai_roles":["others_use"],"contexts":["finance","relationships"],"unknowns":["Which AI tool was used and how the police established face-swapping.","Whether the Rs 40,000 was returned to the victim.","Whether the five suspects were charged or convicted."],"geography":{"basis":"Event: the victim received the calls and made the payment as a resident of Kozhikode, Kerala, and Kozhikode police investigated (New Indian Express; Mathrubhumi). No court proceeding is described.","court_countries":[],"event_countries":["IN"],"affected_person_countries":["IN"]},"publication":{"basis":"Published as a core case (depicted_or_impersonated, communicated_with): Kozhikode police, after arresting five suspects, said the caller used AI face-swapping to impersonate the victim's former colleague on the video call that led him to pay Rs 40,000. The police's earlier view was a suspicion, which the record states. The victim and the accused are not named.","reviewed_on":"2026-10-22"},"ai_involvement":{"basis":"Kozhikode police, who investigated the complaint and arrested five suspects, said the perpetrator used AI-powered face-swapping technology to impersonate the victim's former colleague on the video call that preceded the payment (Mathrubhumi, June 2024). The faked colleague appeared to the victim and asked for money (depicted_or_impersonated, communicated_with). In July 2023 the police had described deepfake use only as a suspicion; the 2024 account does not disclose the technical basis or the tool.","status":"reported"},"person_relations":["communicated_with","depicted_or_impersonated"]},"name":"Kozhikode, Kerala: police say a deepfake video call imitating a former colleague cost a retired man Rs 40,000; five later arrested","summary":"A retired Union (central) government employee in Kozhikode, Kerala, sent Rs 40,000 on 9 July 2023 after a WhatsApp video call and voice call from someone who looked like a former senior colleague and asked for money for a relative's surgery, the New Indian Express reported; Kerala cyber police traced the money and blocked the recipient account. In June 2024 Kozhikode police said the perpetrator had used AI-powered face-swapping technology to impersonate the former colleague on the video call, and that they had arrested five suspects from several states, according to Mathrubhumi.","incidentDate":"2023-07-09","incidentKind":"single_event","incidentDatePrecision":"day","exposurePattern":"repeated_interactions","reportedDate":"2023-07-17","aiSystem":"AI face-swapping (deepfake) used in a WhatsApp video call to impersonate the victim's former colleague, according to Kozhikode police (tool not identified)","aiProduct":"Unidentified video tool","severity":"low","verificationStatus":"credible","harmCategories":[],"harmOutcomes":["financial_loss"],"harmOutcomeSummary":"According to the New Indian Express, a retired man in Kozhikode sent Rs 40,000 after a video call from someone who looked like a former colleague; police later said the caller used AI face-swapping to impersonate the colleague.","frameworkFacets":[],"pathwayDirection":"outward","causationStatus":"supported","participantUsersAffectedMin":0,"otherPeopleHarmedMin":1,"affectedCountStatus":"exact","affectedCountEvidence":"One person, the retired man who sent Rs 40,000 (New Indian Express; Mathrubhumi). Friends who received similar messages are not counted; no loss by them is reported.","victimAgeRange":"elderly","jurisdiction":"IN","platformType":"other","outcomeType":"criminal_charges","outcomeStatus":"ongoing","primarySourceUrl":"https://english.mathrubhumi.com/news/crime/kozhikode-squad-arrest-five-in-connection-with-deepfake-fraud-67e25620","primarySourceLabel":"Mathrubhumi English, 22 June 2024: AI-driven 'Deepfake' fraud: Kozhikode Police nab all 5 accused from multiple states","firstPublishedAt":"2026-10-22T03:21:42.546478+00:00","updatedAt":"2026-10-22T03:21:42.546478+00:00","scopeVersion":"facts-v3","tags":["deepfake-video-call","impersonation","whatsapp","older-adult","kerala","police-arrests","depicted-or-impersonated"]},{"id":"2023-tokyo-police-say-man-posted-ai-made-sexual-deepfakes-resembling-about-300-actresses-and-idols-on-paid-sites","caseFacts":{"claims":[{"id":"c1","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"画像生成ＡＩ（人工知能）で女性芸能人に似せて作ったわいせつ画像「性的ディープフェイク」を会員制サイトに掲載したとして、警視庁が１９日 ... わいせつ電磁的記録記録媒体陳列容疑で逮捕したことがわかった。","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"The Tokyo police arrested a man on 19 January 2026 on suspicion of displaying obscene electronic records, for posting on member sites obscene images made with image-generation AI to resemble female celebrities.","causal_attribution":"Police action as reported; the AI generation is the police's description."},{"id":"c2","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"同庁は、２０２３年夏以降、計約３００人の女優やアイドルの画像を使った５０万点以上の性的ディープフェイクをサイトに掲載し、計約１１００万円の閲覧料を得たとみている。","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"Police believe that since summer 2023 he posted more than 500,000 sexual deepfakes using images of about 300 actresses and idols and earned about 11 million yen in viewing fees.","causal_attribution":"Police belief, not a finding."},{"id":"c3","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"捜査関係者によると、男は２４年１２月～昨年５月、女性芸能人に酷似したわいせつ画像計十数点を二つの会員制サイトに掲載し、不特定多数が閲覧できるようにした疑い。","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"According to investigative sources, the charge covers a dozen or so obscene images resembling female celebrities posted on two member sites between December 2024 and May 2025.","causal_attribution":"Investigative sources' account of the charge."},{"id":"c4","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"無料公開されている画像生成ＡＩに女優やアイドルの画像データを学習させ、本人に似せたわいせつ画像を作成。 ... 男は高額プランの契約者から、モデルにしてほしい芸能人の要望も受け付けていたという。","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"Police say he trained a freely available image-generation AI on image data of actresses and idols to make obscene images resembling them, and took requests from higher-paying members for which celebrity to depict.","causal_attribution":"The AI generation of the images, as described by police and investigative sources."}],"effects":[{"label":"actresses and idols depicted without consent in AI-made sexual deepfakes sold through member sites","claim_id":"c2","direction":"negative"}],"sources":[{"id":"s1","url":"https://www.yomiuri.co.jp/national/20260120-GYT1T00049/","kind":"news_report","access":"read","language":"ja","translation_note":"Read in Japanese by the research agent (an AI) on 2026-10-22 and translated by the research agent (an AI) into English; no human translator or reviewer was involved. Yomiuri Shimbun report of 20 Jan 2026 (datePublished 2026-01-20T05:00+09:00) relaying the Tokyo police and investigative sources; HTTP 200.","independence_group":"tokyo-police-jan-2026-arrest"}],"version":1,"ai_roles":["others_use"],"contexts":["privacy","justice"],"unknowns":["Which image-generation tool was used and how investigators established the AI generation.","How many women appear in the charged images, and whether any depicted woman responded.","Whether the suspect admitted the charge or was indicted, and the outcome."],"geography":{"basis":"The Tokyo Metropolitan Police made the arrest, and the images were made on the suspect's home computer in Japan and posted on member sites promoted through X and Instagram, as described, so the event country is Japan. The depicted women are described only as actresses and idols, so their countries are not recorded. No court proceeding is reported.","court_countries":[],"event_countries":["JP"],"affected_person_countries":[]},"publication":{"basis":"Published as a core case (depicted_or_impersonated): the investigating Tokyo police say a man trained a freely available image-generation AI on actresses' and idols' images and posted obscene images resembling them on paid member sites; he was arrested in January 2026. Non-consensual sexual depiction is itself the reported harm. The attribution rests on one report of the police account. No suspect or depicted woman is named.","reviewed_on":"2026-10-22"},"ai_involvement":{"basis":"According to the Tokyo police and investigative sources as reported by the Yomiuri, the suspect trained a freely available image-generation AI on image data of actresses and idols and used it to make obscene images resembling them, which he posted on paid member sites; police believe more than 500,000 such images of about 300 women. Those generated sexual depictions of real women are the harm. The police do not disclose a tool, and the source does not report how the AI generation was established beyond the investigation's account.","status":"reported"},"person_relations":["depicted_or_impersonated"]},"name":"Tokyo police say a man posted over 500,000 AI-made sexual deepfakes resembling about 300 actresses and idols on paid member sites; arrested in January 2026","summary":"The Tokyo Metropolitan Police arrested a 31-year-old unemployed man on 19 January 2026 on suspicion of displaying obscene electronic records, for posting on member sites obscene images made with image-generation AI to resemble female celebrities, the Yomiuri Shimbun reported. Police believe that since summer 2023 he posted more than 500,000 sexual deepfakes using images of about 300 actresses and idols and earned about 11 million yen in viewing fees. According to investigative sources, the charge covers a dozen or so obscene images resembling female celebrities posted on two member sites between December 2024 and May 2025. Police say he trained a freely available image-generation AI on the women's images, advertised with sample images on X and Instagram, and took requests from higher-paying members for which celebrity to depict.","incidentDate":"2023-01-01","incidentKind":"bounded_series","incidentDatePrecision":"year","exposurePattern":"unknown","reportedDate":"2026-01-20","aiSystem":"A freely available image-generation AI that, according to the Tokyo police, the suspect trained on image data of actresses and idols on his home computer to make obscene images resembling them (tool not identified)","aiProduct":"Unidentified image tool","severity":"medium","verificationStatus":"credible","harmCategories":[],"harmOutcomes":["exploitation_or_abuse"],"harmOutcomeSummary":"According to the Tokyo police, a man used image-generation AI to make sexual deepfakes resembling actresses and idols without their consent and sold access to them on member sites; police believe about 300 women were depicted.","frameworkFacets":[],"pathwayDirection":"outward","causationStatus":"alleged","participantUsersAffectedMin":0,"otherPeopleHarmedMin":0,"affectedCountStatus":"unquantified","affectedCountEvidence":"Police believe images of about 300 actresses and idols were used; the charge concerns a dozen or so images whose number of depicted women is not stated, so no count is entered and zero placeholders are used. Paying viewers are not counted.","victimAgeRange":"adult","jurisdiction":"JP","platformType":"other","outcomeType":"criminal_charges","outcomeStatus":"unknown","primarySourceUrl":"https://www.yomiuri.co.jp/national/20260120-GYT1T00049/","primarySourceLabel":"Yomiuri Shimbun, 20 Jan 2026: 「性的ディープフェイク」で女性芸能人に似せたわいせつ画像を作成、会員制サイトに掲載した疑い…警視庁が３１歳男を逮捕","firstPublishedAt":"2026-10-22T03:16:14.122951+00:00","updatedAt":"2026-10-22T03:16:14.122951+00:00","scopeVersion":"facts-v3","tags":["sexual_deepfake","generative_ai","arrest","japan"]},{"id":"2023-merseyside-police-say-man-used-ai-to-make-indecent-pseudo-images-of-children-and-sexual-deepfakes-jailed","caseFacts":{"claims":[{"id":"c1","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"pleaded guilty to making indecent photographs/pseudo-photographs of a child, sharing a photograph or film of a person in an intimate state for the purpose of sexual gratification and voyeurism. ... He was jailed for two years and two months yesterday, Tuesday 22 October, at Liverpool Crown Court.","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"},{"locator":"He was jailed for two years and two months on October 22 at Liverpool Crown Court.","relation":"supports","source_id":"s3"}],"assertion":"The man pleaded guilty to making indecent photographs or pseudo-photographs of a child, sharing a photograph or film of a person in an intimate state for the purpose of sexual gratification, and voyeurism, and was jailed for two years and two months at Liverpool Crown Court on 22 October 2024.","causal_attribution":"Court outcome as announced by the police; no AI role is stated in the offence names."},{"id":"c2","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"As part of a complex investigation, it was also found that between July 2023 and January 2024, ... made 266 indecent pseudo-images of children using AI technology.","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"},{"locator":"made 266 indecent pseudo-images of children using AI technology.","relation":"supports","source_id":"s3"}],"assertion":"Merseyside Police say an investigation found that between July 2023 and January 2024 the man made 266 indecent pseudo-images of children using AI technology.","causal_attribution":"The investigating police attribute the 266 pseudo-images to AI technology; they do not name the tool or say how they established its use."},{"id":"c3","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"including creating and sharing digitally altered pornographic images of children and women – known more commonly as ‘deepfakes’. ... A ‘deepfake’ is an image or video that has been digitally altered with the help of Artificial Intelligence (AI) to replace the face of one person with the face of another. ... used the faces of real women and children without their knowledge to create pornographic images and shared them online.","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"},{"locator":"using artificial intelligence (AI) technology and the faces of real women and children before sharing them online, Merseyside Police said.","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"}],"assertion":"The police say the man used the faces of real women and children without their knowledge to create pornographic images and shared them online, and describe the images as digitally altered images known as deepfakes, which the release defines as images altered with the help of AI to replace one person's face with another's.","causal_attribution":"Police account; the release's own AI statement (c2) concerns the pseudo-images of children, and the BBC relay extends the AI wording to the women's images."},{"id":"c4","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"Knowing those images of me are out there circulating the internet is so violating. ... A second woman who was targeted in the same way said in her Victim Impact Statement","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"},{"locator":"I worry when a man looks at me for too long and panic that he may have seen the images.","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"}],"assertion":"Two women gave victim impact statements, published by the police, describing a sense of violation, fear that others had seen the images, anxiety and difficulty sleeping.","causal_attribution":"The statements describe harm from the pornographic images; the sources do not say whether these women's images were made with AI."},{"id":"c5","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"he obviously didn't know how to create these deepfake images at that point, so he had uploaded hundreds of headshots of me off my Facebook, Instagram, family photos that were shared in our groupchat and he had asked people to deface them. ... there was no law against deepfake pornography at the time so technically no crime had been committed. ... was arrested in January 2023, with police pinning their investigation on the missing black heels. ... It never went to the Crown Prosecution Service. They decided on that day there was not a case to be answered.","relation":"supports","source_id":"s4"},{"locator":"opened Facebook in September 2022, she found an anonymous message ... Then a quick Google search of the username uncovered a series of digitally altered images, with her face superimposed onto the naked bodies of other women. ... There was no law against deepfake pornography at the time so technically no crime had been committed","relation":"supports","source_id":"s5"}],"assertion":"A woman related to the man by marriage says the explicit images of her that she found online after anonymous messages in September 2022 were made by other people he had asked to deface her photos, because he did not then know how to make deepfakes himself, and that the case never went to prosecutors after his arrest in January 2023; the Echo and SWNS report that no law then covered such images.","causal_attribution":"In this account the earlier images of her were made by other people he asked to deface her photos (the method is not stated); they predate the period the police describe and are context, not among the AI-made images the police count."}],"effects":[{"label":"real children's and women's faces used in sexual images, which the police say included 266 AI-made pseudo-images of children","claim_id":"c2","direction":"negative"},{"label":"two women describe violation, anxiety and fear after discovering the images","claim_id":"c4","direction":"negative"}],"sources":[{"id":"s1","url":"https://www.merseyside.police.uk/news/merseyside/news/2024/october/southport-man-jailed-for-creating-digitally-altered-pornographic-images-of-children-and-women/","kind":"official_statement","access":"read","language":"en","translation_note":"Read in English by the research agent (an AI) on 2026-10-20 through an Internet Archive capture (web.archive.org/web/2024id_/...), because the live page returned HTTP 403; no translation needed.","independence_group":"merseyside-police-oct-2024"},{"id":"s2","url":"https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c5y3820nq7zo","kind":"news_report","access":"read","language":"en","translation_note":"Read in English by the research agent (an AI) on 2026-10-20; HTTP 200. BBC report relaying the Merseyside Police release and victim impact statements, the same police origin as s1.","independence_group":"merseyside-police-oct-2024"},{"id":"s3","url":"https://metro.co.uk/2024/10/23/man-jailed-making-indecent-deepfake-images-children-women-21851607/","kind":"news_report","access":"read","language":"en","translation_note":"Read in English by the research agent (an AI) on 2026-10-20; HTTP 200. Metro report reproducing the police release wording, the same police origin as s1.","independence_group":"merseyside-police-oct-2024"},{"id":"s4","url":"https://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/news/liverpool-news/mums-deepfake-horror-brother-law-33992504","kind":"news_report","access":"read","language":"en","translation_note":"Read in English by the research agent (an AI) on 2026-10-20 through an Internet Archive capture (web.archive.org/web/2026id_/...), because the live page returned an empty HTTP 202; interview with a woman related to the man by marriage.","independence_group":"relative-interviews-2026"},{"id":"s5","url":"https://www.jambalayanews.com/news/national/woman-victim-of-deepfake-porn-by-family-member-helps-change-law/article_c5780438-a23f-5667-8247-deca2c6d5cce.html","kind":"news_report","access":"read","language":"en","translation_note":"Read in English by the research agent (an AI) on 2026-10-20; HTTP 200. SWNS feature syndicated by Jambalaya News, based on an interview with the same woman as s4, so not independent of s4.","independence_group":"relative-interviews-2026"}],"version":1,"ai_roles":["others_use"],"contexts":["privacy","justice"],"unknowns":["Which AI tool was used and how the police established its use.","How many children and women were depicted; 266 is the police count of AI-made pseudo-images of children.","Whether the two women who gave victim impact statements were depicted in AI-made images or in images made by other means.","Where the images were shared online and whether they were removed."],"geography":{"basis":"The case was investigated by Merseyside Police and sentenced at Liverpool Crown Court, so the court country is the United Kingdom (GB). The sources describe the man as from Southport but do not say where the images were made, uploaded or viewed, or where the depicted children and women live, so no event or affected-person country is recorded.","court_countries":["GB"],"event_countries":[],"affected_person_countries":[]},"publication":{"basis":"Published as a core case (depicted_or_impersonated): the investigating Merseyside Police say the man made 266 indecent pseudo-images of children using AI technology and used real women's and children's faces in pornographic images he shared online; he pleaded guilty and was jailed. The technical basis of the police AI attribution is undisclosed, and a relative's account that her earlier images were edited by other people is recorded as context. No victim is named.","reviewed_on":"2026-10-20"},"ai_involvement":{"basis":"The investigating Merseyside Police say the man made 266 indecent pseudo-images of children using AI technology between July 2023 and January 2024 and that he used the faces of real women and children without their knowledge in pornographic images he shared online. The AI-made depictions of real people were the sexual images at the centre of the offences. The police do not name the tool or say how they established its use, and their explicit statement of AI use concerns the pseudo-images of children; the images of women are called deepfakes, which the release defines as images altered with the help of AI.","status":"reported"},"person_relations":["depicted_or_impersonated"]},"name":"Merseyside police say a man used AI to make 266 indecent pseudo-images of children and made sexual deepfakes of real women; he was jailed in 2024","summary":"Merseyside Police said in October 2024 that a Southport man had been jailed for two years and two months at Liverpool Crown Court after pleading guilty to making indecent photographs or pseudo-photographs of a child, sharing an intimate photograph or film, and voyeurism. According to the police, an investigation found that between July 2023 and January 2024 he made 266 indecent pseudo-images of children using AI technology, and that he used the faces of real women and children without their knowledge to create pornographic images, which the force calls deepfakes, and shared them online. Two women described in victim impact statements lasting fear, anxiety and a sense of violation. A woman related to him by marriage later told the Liverpool Echo that explicit images of her, which she found online after anonymous messages in September 2022, were made by other people he had asked to deface her photos, and that the case never went to prosecutors after his arrest in January 2023.","incidentDate":"2023-07-01","incidentEndDate":"2024-01-31","incidentKind":"bounded_series","incidentDatePrecision":"month","exposurePattern":"unknown","reportedDate":"2024-10-23","aiSystem":"Unnamed AI technology that Merseyside Police say the man used to make indecent pseudo-images of children (tool not identified)","aiProduct":"Unidentified image tool","severity":"high","verificationStatus":"credible","harmCategories":[],"harmOutcomes":["exploitation_or_abuse","psychological_distress"],"harmOutcomeSummary":"Merseyside Police say the man made 266 indecent pseudo-images of children using AI technology between July 2023 and January 2024, and used the faces of real women and children without their knowledge in pornographic images he shared online; two women described lasting anxiety and a sense of violation.","frameworkFacets":[],"pathwayDirection":"outward","causationStatus":"alleged","participantUsersAffectedMin":0,"otherPeopleHarmedMin":0,"affectedCountStatus":"unquantified","affectedCountEvidence":"No reliable count: the police say real children's and women's faces were used but give no number of people depicted (266 is a count of images). Two women gave victim impact statements, but the sources do not establish that their images were among those the police tie to AI, so they are not counted.","victimAgeRange":"minor","jurisdiction":"GB","platformType":"other","outcomeType":"criminal_charges","outcomeStatus":"resolved","primarySourceUrl":"https://www.merseyside.police.uk/news/merseyside/news/2024/october/southport-man-jailed-for-creating-digitally-altered-pornographic-images-of-children-and-women/","primarySourceLabel":"Merseyside Police, 23 Oct 2024: Southport man jailed for creating digitally altered pornographic images of children and women","firstPublishedAt":"2026-10-20T03:04:09.115741+00:00","updatedAt":"2026-10-20T03:04:09.115741+00:00","scopeVersion":"facts-v3","tags":["ai_generated_images","pseudo_images_of_children","sexual_deepfakes","guilty_plea","united_kingdom"]}]}