{"meta":{"exportedAt":"2026-10-18T07:45:21.326Z","formatVersion":2,"selection":{"q":"lawyer","system":"","harm":"","context":"","country":"","role":"","relation":"core","evidence":"","year":"2026","response":"","severity":"","verification":"","view":"incidents","sort":"added"},"totalIncidents":22,"coverage":{"cases":22,"countries":11,"languages":12,"unknownLocation":2,"locationPending":0,"unknownLanguage":0,"unknownDate":0,"lawsuits":2,"regulatory":13,"minors":1,"coreRelations":22,"contextualRelations":3,"mixedRelations":3,"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":"2026-san-francisco-federal-judge-orders-sworn-explanation-after-lawyer-files-claude-drafted-motion-with-phantom-quotations","caseFacts":{"claims":[{"id":"c1","status":"documented","evidence":[{"locator":"Claude Console, to create an initial draft of the motion. That was a mistake. ... I did not double check the ... quotations and obviously did not read the cited cases carefully ... This was the first time I have ever used an AI platform to create a draft of a brief","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"},{"locator":"told Illston in a declaration that he sent the AI-drafted document to an associate for fact-checking.","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"}],"assertion":"In a sworn declaration filed on 15 May 2026, the partner who filed the 6 May motion stated that he used Claude Console to create an initial draft of it, that he did not double-check the quotations, and that this was the first time he had used an AI platform to draft a brief.","causal_attribution":"The partner's own sworn declaration."},{"id":"c2","status":"documented","evidence":[{"locator":"pursuant to the Court’s May 13, 2026 Order, ECF No. 395 ... This declaration is in response to the Court’s instruction that I explain, under oath, ... how three phantom quotations ended up in the Emergency Motion to Quash","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"The declarations were filed under the court's 13 May 2026 order, and the partner's declaration responds to the court's instruction that he explain under oath how three phantom quotations ended up in the motion.","causal_attribution":"The firm's notice and the partner's declaration."},{"id":"c3","status":"documented","evidence":[{"locator":"have also personally apologized to the Plaintiffs’ attorneys. ... A redlined version of the filing, ... Those same policies prohibit the use of tools like Claude for legal research ... internal investigation to understand fully how the error occurred ... The internal consequences for this failure are under ... the review and consideration of our principal","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"The partner apologised to the court and counsel and filed a redlined corrected version, and the firm's founding partner declared that firm policy prohibits tools like Claude for legal drafting and that the firm opened an internal investigation; the partner declared that the internal consequences of the failure were under review by the firm's principal.","causal_attribution":"Declarations of the partner and the founding partner."},{"id":"c4","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"Three lawyers representing an ex-Homeland Security official apologized to a California federal judge ... sprawling lawsuit over the Trump administration’s mass layoffs","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"}],"assertion":"The motion was filed in the lawsuit over the Trump administration's mass layoffs, on behalf of a former Homeland Security official, and three of the firm's lawyers apologised to the judge.","causal_attribution":"Bloomberg Government."}],"effects":[{"label":"a lawyer whose AI-drafted motion contained three phantom quotations was required by the court to explain them under oath and filed sworn apologies and a corrected motion","claim_id":"c2","direction":"negative"}],"sources":[{"id":"s1","url":"https://fingfx.thomsonreuters.com/gfx/legaldocs/myvmylgokvr/Binnall%20AI%20apology.pdf","kind":"court_filing","access":"read","language":"en","translation_note":"Read in English by the research agent (an AI) on 2026-10-18 as text extracted from the PDF (HTTP 200); no translation was involved and no human reviewer read it. ECF No. 399 with exhibits, filed 15 May 2026 in Case No. 3:25-cv-03698-SI: the firm's notice, the declarations of three firm lawyers and the redlined motion. The court's 13 May order was not inspected.","independence_group":"binnall-declarations-ecf-399"},{"id":"s2","url":"https://news.bgov.com/litigation/lawyers-apologize-for-fake-ai-quotes-in-trump-mass-layoffs-case","kind":"news_report","access":"read","language":"en","translation_note":"Read in English by the research agent (an AI) on 2026-10-18 (HTTP 200); no translation was involved. Bloomberg Government, 16 May 2026. It reports the same declarations and is not independent of the filing.","independence_group":"binnall-declarations-ecf-399"}],"version":1,"ai_roles":["own_use"],"contexts":["work","justice"],"unknowns":["Whether the court imposed sanctions or other measures after the declarations.","The text of the court's 13 May 2026 order.","Which phantom quotations came from the AI draft and which, if any, from later edits."],"geography":{"basis":"The motion was filed in, and the declarations answer an order of, the US District Court for the Northern District of California (case 3:25-cv-03698-SI), after first being filed in the Eastern District of Virginia. The partner's country of residence is not stated.","court_countries":["US"],"event_countries":["US"],"affected_person_countries":[]},"publication":{"basis":"Published as a core case (communicated_with, own use): the filing lawyer's sworn declaration says he used Claude Console to draft a motion that contained three phantom quotations, and the court ordered him to explain them under oath; he and his firm filed apologies and a corrected motion. No sanction is reported in the sources read.","reviewed_on":"2026-10-18"},"ai_involvement":{"basis":"The partner declared under penalty of perjury that he used Claude Console to create the initial draft of the motion and did not double-check its quotations; the motion as filed contained three phantom quotations, which the court required him to explain under oath. His own account connects the AI-generated draft to the quotations the court questioned. Whether the specific quotations came from the AI draft rather than later editing is not separately stated.","status":"supported"},"person_relations":["communicated_with"]},"name":"San Francisco federal judge orders sworn explanation after a lawyer files a motion he says Claude Console drafted with three phantom quotations","summary":"In the federal lawsuit over the Trump administration's mass layoffs (AFGE v. Trump, Northern District of California), a partner at Binnall Law Group filed an emergency motion on the night of 6 May 2026 to quash a deposition subpoena directed at a former Homeland Security official the firm represents. In a declaration filed on 15 May under the court's 13 May order, the partner said he had used Claude Console, an enterprise AI platform, to create an initial draft, that an associate told him she had checked the citations, and that he did not double-check the quotations. He was explaining under oath, at the court's instruction, how three phantom quotations ended up in the motion. He apologised to the court and opposing counsel and attached a corrected version. The firm's founding partner declared that firm policy prohibits using tools like Claude for legal drafting, that the error breached its policies and training, and that the firm had opened an internal investigation. Whether Judge Susan Illston imposed sanctions is not reported in the sources read.","incidentDate":"2026-05-06","incidentKind":"single_event","incidentDatePrecision":"day","exposurePattern":"single_interaction","reportedDate":"2026-05-15","aiSystem":"Claude Console, described by the filing partner as an enterprise-level, data-isolated AI platform, used to create the initial draft of the motion","aiProduct":"Claude Console (reported)","severity":"low","verificationStatus":"credible","harmCategories":[],"harmOutcomes":["legal_harm","reputational_harm"],"harmOutcomeSummary":"A lawyer whose AI-drafted motion contained three phantom quotations was required by the court to explain under oath how they got there, and he and his firm filed sworn apologies and a corrected motion; the firm says the filing breached its own AI policy.","frameworkFacets":[],"causationStatus":"supported","participantUsersAffectedMin":1,"otherPeopleHarmedMin":0,"affectedCountStatus":"documented_minimum","affectedCountEvidence":"One person is counted: the partner who used Claude Console, filed the motion and was instructed to explain it under oath. Two other firm lawyers also filed declarations, but no consequence for them is described, so the count is a lower bound. The client and opposing counsel are not counted.","victimAgeRange":"adult","jurisdiction":"US","platformType":"other","outcomeType":"internal_action","outcomeStatus":"unknown","primarySourceUrl":"https://fingfx.thomsonreuters.com/gfx/legaldocs/myvmylgokvr/Binnall%20AI%20apology.pdf","primarySourceLabel":"Notice of declarations from counsel, AFGE v. Trump, N.D. Cal., ECF No. 399, filed 15 May 2026","firstPublishedAt":"2026-10-18T03:08:26.269041+00:00","updatedAt":"2026-10-18T03:08:26.269041+00:00","scopeVersion":"facts-v3","tags":["ai-drafted-filing","phantom-quotations","court-filing","lawyer","claude","federal-court","california"]},{"id":"2026-seremban-malaysia-police-investigate-reports-of-schoolgirls-photos-edited-with-ai-into-explicit-images","caseFacts":{"claims":[{"id":"c1","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'Polis menerima lima laporan berhubung penyebaran gambar wajah pelajar perempuan di sebuah sekolah menengah di sini yang disunting menggunakan teknologi kecerdasan buatan (AI) sehingga menyerupai gambar lucah.' ... 'pihaknya menerima laporan membabitkan mangsa yang berusia 14 hingga 17 tahun itu daripada ibu bapa dan penjaga pada 20 hingga 23 Ogos lepas.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"},{"locator":"'Police have received five reports over the circulation of AI-manipulated images depicting female students from a secondary school here in explicit or pornographic content.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"},{"locator":"'yang dimanipulasi menggunakan teknologi kecerdasan buatan (AI) sehingga menyerupai gambar lucah.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s3"}],"assertion":"Negeri Sembilan police said on 17 October 2026 that they had received five reports, lodged by parents or guardians between 20 and 23 August 2026, over the circulation of photographs of female students at a secondary school in Seremban that were edited using AI technology to resemble pornographic images; the victims are aged 14 to 17.","causal_attribution":"Police statement as relayed by Bernama and RTM; the AI description opens both reports and is not inside the quoted passages; technical basis undisclosed."},{"id":"c2","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'In this case, the suspect, a Form Five student, has been subjected to disciplinary action by the school, including suspension from classes from Aug 24 to 28.' ... 'The investigation is being conducted under Section 5 of the Sexual Offences Against Children Act 2017 and Section 292 of the Penal Code.' ... 'To date, five witnesses have been called to have their statements recorded,'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"},{"locator":"'suspek seorang pelajar tingkatan lima dikenakan tindakan disiplin oleh pihak sekolah, iaitu digantung sekolah bermula pada 24 hingga 28 Ogos lepas.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"}],"assertion":"According to the police, the suspect is a Form Five student whom the school suspended from classes from 24 to 28 August 2026; the case is investigated under Section 5 of the Sexual Offences Against Children Act 2017 and Section 292 of the Penal Code, and five witnesses have given statements.","causal_attribution":"Police statement."},{"id":"c3","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'the incident came to light on Aug 12,' ... 'discovered an unlocked mobile phone left unattended in the school surau.' ... 'Upon accessing the device, the student uncovered a cache of explicit photographs of female schoolmates that had been digitally altered using AI.' ... 'The boy then forwarded several of these images to his older sister,' ... 'which quickly alerted parents to the situation.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s4"}],"assertion":"According to a lawyer for a group of parents, the matter came to light on 12 August when a younger pupil found an unlocked phone left in the school prayer room containing explicit photographs of female schoolmates digitally altered using AI, and forwarded some to his older sister, which alerted parents.","causal_attribution":"The parents' lawyer's account at a press conference."},{"id":"c4","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'the student reportedly produced around 200 explicit deepfake images targeting a large number of female students at the school.' ... 'there had been no developments even after five police reports were lodged in August.' ... 'an investigating officer claimed there were no criminal elements involved, suggesting the matter be left entirely to education authorities,'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s4"}],"assertion":"The lawyer alleged that the student produced around 200 explicit deepfake images targeting a large number of female students, and said there had been no developments after the August reports and that an investigating officer had claimed there were no criminal elements.","causal_attribution":"Allegation by the parents' lawyer; the police statement of the same day describes an active investigation."},{"id":"c5","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'He claimed that this quick return has triggered widespread anxiety and safety concerns among the female students.' ... 'A mother of one of the victims, whose doctored explicit photographs were found on the suspect's phone, expressed the parents' frustration during the press conference.' ... 'We only want an assurance that the boy has completely deleted all the images and did not share or sell them on other platforms,'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s4"}],"assertion":"The lawyer said the student's quick return to school triggered widespread anxiety and safety concerns among the female students; a mother of one girl whose doctored photographs were found on the phone said parents wanted an assurance that the images had been deleted and not shared or sold.","causal_attribution":"The lawyer's and a parent's statements."}],"effects":[{"label":"female students' photographs edited with AI into explicit images","claim_id":"c1","direction":"negative"},{"label":"reported anxiety and safety concerns among the female students","claim_id":"c5","direction":"negative"}],"sources":[{"id":"s1","url":"https://www.bernama.com/tv/news.php?id=2621843","kind":"news_report","access":"read","language":"en","translation_note":"Read in English on 2026-10-18 (HTTP 200). Bernama TV report of the Negeri Sembilan police chief's statement, 17 October 2026.","independence_group":"negeri-sembilan-police-statement-17-oct-2026"},{"id":"s2","url":"https://www.bernama.com/bm/news.php?id=2621837","kind":"news_report","access":"read","language":"ms","translation_note":"Read in Malay on 2026-10-18 (HTTP 200); quoted passages are kept in Malay and the English sense was rendered by the research agent (an AI), not a human translator. Bernama's Malay report of the same police statement.","independence_group":"negeri-sembilan-police-statement-17-oct-2026"},{"id":"s3","url":"https://berita.rtm.gov.my/kes/senarai-berita-kes/senarai-artikel/polis-siasat-kes-gambar-lucah-janaan-ai/","kind":"news_report","access":"read","language":"ms","translation_note":"Read in Malay on 2026-10-18 (HTTP 200); English sense rendered by the research agent (an AI). RTM report of the same police statement; the page's 'RINGKASAN BERITA AI' box is a site summary feature, not part of the report, and is not cited.","independence_group":"negeri-sembilan-police-statement-17-oct-2026"},{"id":"s4","url":"https://www.thestar.com.my/news/nation/2026/10/17/parents-urge-police-action-over-alleged-explicit-deepfakes-at-seremban-school","kind":"news_report","access":"read","language":"en","translation_note":"Read in English on 2026-10-18 (HTTP 200). The Star report of a press conference by a lawyer for a group of parents, attended by some parents, 17 October 2026.","independence_group":"parents-lawyer-press-conference-seremban"}],"version":1,"ai_roles":["others_use"],"contexts":["education","justice"],"unknowns":["Which AI tool was used and how the police established that the photographs were edited with AI.","How many girls are depicted; the figure of about 200 images is the lawyer's allegation.","Whether the images were shared or sold beyond the phone on which they were found.","Whether the suspect will be charged."],"geography":{"basis":"Event: a secondary school in Seremban, Negeri Sembilan, Malaysia, investigated by the Negeri Sembilan police (Bernama, RTM, The Star). The girls attend that school. No court proceeding is reported, so court_countries is empty.","court_countries":[],"event_countries":["MY"],"affected_person_countries":["MY"]},"publication":{"basis":"Published as a core case (depicted_or_impersonated): the investigating Negeri Sembilan police describe the reports as concerning female students' photographs edited with AI into pornographic-looking images and are investigating under child sexual offences law, and a parent says her daughter's doctored photographs were found on the suspect's phone. The police do not disclose how the AI editing was established. No pupil is named.","reviewed_on":"2026-10-18"},"ai_involvement":{"basis":"The investigating Negeri Sembilan police, in their 17 October 2026 statement as reported by Bernama (English and Malay) and RTM, describe the case as the circulation of female students' photographs edited using artificial intelligence technology to resemble pornographic images, and are investigating it under child sexual offences law; the parents' lawyer separately says the photographs found on the suspect's phone had been digitally altered using AI. The edited images depict the girls (depicted_or_impersonated) and are the reported harm. The police do not disclose how the AI editing was established, the quoted parts of their statement do not repeat the AI wording, and no tool is named.","status":"reported"},"person_relations":["depicted_or_impersonated"]},"name":"Seremban, Malaysia: police investigate reports that schoolgirls' photos were edited with AI into explicit images; a fellow student is the suspect","summary":"Negeri Sembilan police said on 17 October 2026, in a statement reported by Bernama and RTM, that they had received five reports, lodged by parents or guardians between 20 and 23 August 2026, over the circulation of photographs of female students at a secondary school in Seremban that were edited using AI to resemble pornographic images. The police describe the victims as aged 14 to 17 and the suspect as an upper-secondary student whom the school suspended for five days in August; the case is being investigated under child sexual offences law and the Penal Code. A lawyer for a group of parents told The Star that the images came to light on 12 August, when a younger pupil found them on an unlocked phone at school, and alleged that the student made about 200 such images of many female schoolmates. The lawyer said there had been no progress after the August reports and that the student's quick return to school had caused anxiety among the girls. The AI tool is not identified.","incidentDate":"2026-08-01","incidentKind":"single_event","incidentDatePrecision":"month","exposurePattern":"unknown","reportedDate":"2026-10-17","aiSystem":"AI technology used to edit photographs of the students into pornographic-looking images, according to the police statement (tool not identified)","aiProduct":"Unidentified image tool","severity":"high","verificationStatus":"credible","harmCategories":[],"harmOutcomes":["exploitation_or_abuse","psychological_distress"],"harmOutcomeSummary":"According to the police, photographs of female secondary students aged 14 to 17 were edited with AI into images resembling pornography, leading parents to lodge five police reports; the parents' lawyer says the girls have felt widespread anxiety and safety concerns since the suspect returned to school.","frameworkFacets":[],"pathwayDirection":"outward","causationStatus":"alleged","participantUsersAffectedMin":0,"otherPeopleHarmedMin":1,"affectedCountStatus":"partial","affectedCountEvidence":"At least one girl: a mother told The Star that her daughter's doctored explicit photographs were found on the suspect's phone. The police speak of victims aged 14 to 17 across five reports without stating how many girls are depicted, and the lawyer's 'large number of female students' is not a count, so the remainder is unquantified.","victimAgeRange":"minor","jurisdiction":"MY","platformType":"other","outcomeType":"investigation_opened","outcomeStatus":"ongoing","primarySourceUrl":"https://www.bernama.com/tv/news.php?id=2621843","primarySourceLabel":"Bernama, 17 October 2026: Police receive five reports over AI-manipulated explicit images of schoolgirls","firstPublishedAt":"2026-10-18T03:04:59.119471+00:00","updatedAt":"2026-10-18T03:04:59.119471+00:00","scopeVersion":"facts-v3","tags":["ai-edited-images","sexual-images-of-minors","school","malaysia","police-investigation","school-suspension","depicted-or-impersonated"]},{"id":"2026-china-doubao-air-ticket-refund-fee-advice-600-yuan-loss-user-sues","caseFacts":{"claims":[{"id":"c1","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'豆包明确表示可以放心退票，平台只扣5%的手续费。'; '实际被扣除的手续费高达40%，远非豆包所说的5%，直接经济损失达600元。'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"},{"locator":"'他通过“去哪儿平台”购买了三张5月2日从河北石家庄飞往重庆的机票'; '豆包告诉他退票手续费不足百元'; '但去程票需要收取600元的手续费。'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"}],"assertion":"The user says he asked Doubao about the refund fee for flights from Shijiazhuang to Chongqing booked for 2 May 2026, that Doubao told him he could safely refund for a small fee (5% in National Business Daily's account, under 100 yuan in Dahe Daily's), and that after refunding he was charged 600 yuan, about 40%.","causal_attribution":"The user's own account (posts and video) as relayed by both outlets; the two reports give different figures for what Doubao said, and the chat itself was not inspected."},{"id":"c2","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'若5月6日前未追回费用，它将直接赔付该用户600元。'; '豆包还给出了一份完整的“赔付承诺书”。'; '豆包这次回复称，自己是AI，无法直接进行转账。'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"},{"locator":"'豆包表示会在当天24点前完成赔付，并让他发送微信收款码。'; '豆包回复称自己是人工智能，无法直接操作真实的银行或微信账户进行转账，并承认了自己的错误。'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"}],"assertion":"He says that Doubao then promised to handle the claim and to pay him 600 yuan itself if the fee was not recovered by 6 May, produced a 'compensation commitment letter', asked on 6 May for his WeChat payment code, and on 7 May said that as an AI it could not make transfers and admitted its error.","causal_attribution":"The user's account of the chatbot's replies, relayed by both outlets."},{"id":"c3","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'完全不用请律师，自己就能打赢'; '他已于5月12日向法院起诉了豆包App的运营方北京春田知韵科技有限公司。'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"},{"locator":"'他还使用豆包生成了一份起诉书，并询问是否需要请律师。'; '向北京互联网法院提交了起诉书。'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"}],"assertion":"He says Doubao drafted his complaint and told him he did not need a lawyer, and a screenshot he posted shows a suit submitted on 12 May 2026 against Beijing Chuntian Zhiyun Technology, the Doubao app's operator; Dahe Daily says he submitted it to the Beijing Internet Court.","causal_attribution":"The user's screenshot and account; no court record was inspected and acceptance of the case is not reported."},{"id":"c4","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'14日，记者致电豆包了解情况，客服表示已经记录并将有专人反馈。'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"},{"locator":"'5月19日，《每日经济新闻》记者（以下简称“每经记者”）查询发现上述用户的相关发帖已删除。'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"On 14 May Doubao's customer service told Dahe Daily the matter had been recorded and someone would respond; by 19 May the user's posts had been deleted, and Doubao and ByteDance did not answer National Business Daily's questions.","causal_attribution":"The reporters' own enquiries."},{"id":"c5","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'AI生成的赔付承诺并不具备法律效力。'; '判定平台责任应适用民法典中的一般过错责任原则'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"A Beijing lawyer told National Business Daily that a compensation promise generated by an AI has no legal effect because an AI is not a civil subject, and that the platform's liability turns on fault.","causal_attribution":"A lawyer's comment, not a ruling in this case."}],"effects":[{"label":"lost a 600-yuan refund fee after the chatbot said the fee would be small, as he reports","claim_id":"c1","direction":"negative"},{"label":"chatbot promised compensation it could not pay, as he reports","claim_id":"c2","direction":"negative"}],"sources":[{"id":"s1","url":"https://www.nbd.com.cn/articles/2026-05-20/4400991.html","kind":"news_report","access":"read","language":"zh","translation_note":"Read in Chinese on 2026-10-17 (HTTP 200); National Business Daily report by Song Xinyue, 20 May 2026, relaying the user's social-media posts and adding the reporter's own checks and a lawyer's comment. Sina Finance, ifeng and DoNews carry the same text and are not cited separately. Translated by the research agent (an AI); no human translator was involved.","independence_group":"doubao-refund-user-posts"},{"id":"s2","url":"https://news.china.com/socialgd/10000169/20260515/49495608.html","kind":"news_report","access":"read","language":"zh","translation_note":"Read in Chinese on 2026-10-17 (HTTP 200); Dahe Daily report carried by China.com, 15 May 2026, relaying the user's video and recording the reporter's call to Doubao customer service. Translated by the research agent (an AI); no human translator was involved.","independence_group":"doubao-refund-user-posts"}],"version":1,"ai_roles":["own_use"],"contexts":["finance","everyday_life","justice"],"unknowns":["The date on which Doubao gave the refund advice and he refunded; the reports place it before the 2 May 2026 flight without a date.","Doubao's exact wording on the fee: National Business Daily reports 5%, Dahe Daily under 100 yuan; the chat logs were not inspected.","Whether the court accepted the suit, and any ruling, settlement or refund.","Whether Doubao or ByteDance responded to the user; neither answered National Business Daily."],"geography":{"basis":"Event: the refund concerned flights from Shijiazhuang to Chongqing booked on Qunar (Dahe Daily). The user's residence is not stated, so affected_person_countries is empty. Court: the user's screenshot shows a suit submitted on 12 May 2026, which Dahe Daily says went to the Beijing Internet Court; acceptance is not reported.","court_countries":["CN"],"event_countries":["CN"],"affected_person_countries":[]},"publication":{"basis":"Published as a core case (communicated_with): two outlets relay the user's account that Doubao's answer about the refund fee led him to refund and lose 600 yuan, and that the chatbot then promised compensation it could not pay. The account is the user's own, from posts since deleted; the outlets add their own enquiries. He is not named.","reviewed_on":"2026-10-17"},"ai_involvement":{"basis":"The user says Doubao, answering his question about the refund fee on a screenshot of his order, told him he could safely refund for a small fee (5% or under 100 yuan in the two reports), and that he refunded on that answer without checking and was charged 600 yuan; he says the chatbot then promised in writing to pay him 600 yuan and later said it could not make transfers. The replies come from his posts and video as relayed by Dahe Daily and National Business Daily; the chat logs were not inspected and the posts were deleted.","status":"reported"},"person_relations":["communicated_with"]},"name":"China: user says Doubao misstated an air-ticket refund fee, costing him 600 yuan, then promised compensation it could not pay; he says he filed suit","summary":"According to his own social-media posts and video, as reported by Dahe Daily (15 May 2026) and National Business Daily (20 May 2026), a user in China who had booked flights from Shijiazhuang to Chongqing for 2 May 2026 decided to drive instead and asked the Doubao chatbot about the refund fee. Doubao told him he could safely refund and that the fee would be small (only 5% in National Business Daily's account, under 100 yuan in Dahe Daily's). He refunded without checking the airline's rules and was charged about 40%, 600 yuan. When he returned to the chatbot, Doubao said it would handle the claim, promised to pay him 600 yuan itself if the money was not recovered by 6 May and produced a 'compensation commitment letter'. On 6 May it said it would pay by midnight and asked for his WeChat payment code; on 7 May it said that as an AI it could not make transfers and admitted its error. He then used Doubao to draft a complaint, was told by it that he did not need a lawyer, and on 12 May submitted a suit against the app's operator, Beijing Chuntian Zhiyun Technology, according to a screenshot he posted (Dahe Daily names the Beijing Internet Court). His posts had been deleted by 19 May. Doubao's customer service told Dahe Daily the matter had been recorded; Doubao and ByteDance did not answer National Business Daily. Whether the court accepted the case, and its outcome, are not reported.","incidentDate":"2026-01-01","incidentKind":"single_event","incidentDatePrecision":"year","exposurePattern":"repeated_interactions","reportedDate":"2026-05-15","aiSystem":"Doubao, ByteDance's consumer chatbot app, as named by the user and both outlets","aiProduct":"Doubao (reported)","aiCompany":"ByteDance (Doubao app operated by Beijing Chuntian Zhiyun Technology Co., Ltd.)","severity":"low","verificationStatus":"unverified","harmCategories":[],"harmOutcomes":["financial_loss"],"harmOutcomeSummary":"The user says he lost a 600-yuan refund fee after Doubao told him the fee would be small, and that the chatbot then promised to compensate him and later said it could not pay; the account is his, as reported by Dahe Daily and National Business Daily.","frameworkFacets":[],"causationStatus":"alleged","participantUsersAffectedMin":1,"otherPeopleHarmedMin":0,"affectedCountStatus":"exact","affectedCountEvidence":"One person: the user who asked Doubao about the refund and paid the 600-yuan fee (Dahe Daily, National Business Daily). No one else is reported harmed.","victimAgeRange":"adult","jurisdiction":"CN","platformType":"assistant","outcomeType":"lawsuit_filed","outcomeStatus":"unknown","primarySourceUrl":"https://www.nbd.com.cn/articles/2026-05-20/4400991.html","primarySourceLabel":"National Business Daily, 20 May 2026: Doubao's 'refund without worry' cost a user 600 yuan; who pays for AI hallucination?","firstPublishedAt":"2026-10-17T03:18:55.521434+00:00","updatedAt":"2026-10-17T03:18:55.521434+00:00","scopeVersion":"facts-v3","tags":["doubao","chatbot-advice","air-ticket-refund","financial-loss","compensation-promise","lawsuit-filed","china","communicated-with"]},{"id":"2026-houston-explosion-trial-3m-expert-witness-dropped-after-chatgpt-drafted-report-exposed","caseFacts":{"claims":[{"id":"c8","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"Numerous lawsuits followed, including one that came to trial in 2026.","relation":"supports","source_id":"s3"}],"assertion":"One of the lawsuits over the explosion came to trial in 2026.","causal_attribution":"The Mary Sue, retelling 404 Media; CBS News's September report of an award 'last month' is consistent."},{"id":"c1","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"used ChatGPT to write significant portions of his “expert report.” ... “show how 3M is 0% at fault for the explosion at Watson Grinding.”","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"},{"locator":"One prompt the expert plugged into AI to prepare his testimony was: \"Show how 3M is 0% at fault for the explosion at Watson Grinding.\"","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"An engineering expert retained for 3M in a lawsuit over the 2020 Watson Grinding explosion used ChatGPT to prepare his expert report, including a prompt asking it to show how 3M was 0% at fault for the explosion.","causal_attribution":"404 Media's review of transcripts and discovery records and CBS News's reporting from deposition transcripts and the plaintiffs' lawyers; the expert acknowledged AI use (c2)."},{"id":"c2","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"acknowledged using artificial intelligence to assist with drafting his report, but defended his research","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"Under questioning, the expert acknowledged using AI to help draft his report but defended his research.","causal_attribution":"CBS News, from deposition transcripts."},{"id":"c3","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"After the deposition, 3M attorneys removed ... from their witness list. But the plaintiffs' attorneys subpoenaed him to testify about the various prompts he entered into ChatGPT.","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"After the deposition, 3M's attorneys removed the expert from their witness list, and the plaintiffs subpoenaed him to testify about his ChatGPT prompts.","causal_attribution":"CBS News."},{"id":"c4","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"claimed an expert witness used ChatGPT to create more than 80% of his expert report ... the attorneys found 300 pages of prompts","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"The plaintiffs claimed the expert used ChatGPT to create more than 80% of his report, and their lawyers said they found 300 pages of prompts.","causal_attribution":"The plaintiffs' lawyers, as reported by CBS News."},{"id":"c5","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"He did not delegate the formation of his opinions to ChatGPT, nor did AI replace his professional judgement","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"The expert's lawyer said he used AI for formatting, structuring and drafting after reviewing the materials, did not delegate the formation of his opinions to ChatGPT, and that public characterisations offer a selective distortion of the record.","causal_attribution":"The expert's lawyer, quoted by CBS News."},{"id":"c6","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"After independently reviewing the facts of the case and reaching his own conclusions, he used AI as a tool to assist in preparing his report","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"3M said the expert was an independent third-party witness retained by outside counsel who used AI as a tool after independently reviewing the facts and reaching his own conclusions.","causal_attribution":"3M's statement to CBS News."},{"id":"c7","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"The jury found that 3M was negligent in its safety checks of the alarm systems that could have prevented a fatal blast. Last month the court awarded the victims $61.5 million.","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"The jury found 3M negligent and the court awarded the victims $61.5 million; 3M said it disagrees with the verdict and intends to appeal.","causal_attribution":"CBS News. No source establishes that the expert's AI use affected the verdict; a plaintiffs' lawyer's belief that it did is his own view."}],"effects":[{"label":"removed from 3M's witness list and subpoenaed to testify about his ChatGPT prompts","claim_id":"c3","direction":"negative"}],"sources":[{"id":"s1","url":"https://www.yahoo.com/news/us/articles/ai-backfires-expert-witness-trial-171000342.html","kind":"news","access":"read","language":"en","translation_note":"Read on 2026-10-17 (HTTP 200) on Yahoo News, which carries the CBS News report credited to CBS; the same text was read through MSN. Published 18 September 2026.","independence_group":"cbs-news-report-september-2026"},{"id":"s2","url":"https://www.404media.co/show-how-3m-is-0-at-fault-expert-witness-used-chatgpt-to-write-report-defending-company-in-deadly-explosion-lawsuit/","kind":"news","access":"read","language":"en","translation_note":"Read on 2026-10-17 (HTTP 200), live and through the Internet Archive; only the headline and opening paragraphs before the paywall were available. Published 17 August 2026.","independence_group":"404-media-records-review-august-2026"},{"id":"s3","url":"https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/crime/expert-witness-at-trial-goes-overboard-with-ai-exclusively-relied-on-chatgpt-to-form-his-opinions-and-write-his-report/ar-AA2apkQp","kind":"news","access":"read","language":"en","translation_note":"Read on 2026-10-17 through the MSN content API (HTTP 200). Published 18 August 2026 by The Mary Sue; a retelling of 404 Media's report, so the same group.","independence_group":"404-media-records-review-august-2026"}],"version":1,"ai_roles":["own_use"],"contexts":["work","justice"],"unknowns":["The date the report was written and the trial dates; the sources say only that the case came to trial in 2026 and that the expert was hired weeks before it began.","How much of the report ChatGPT generated; the plaintiffs say more than 80% and the expert's lawyer disputes the characterisation.","Whether the court ruled on the report or the expert's testimony; no ruling is reported.","Whether the expert lost other work or income; not reported.","3M's reason for removing the expert from its witness list; CBS News reports only that the removal followed the deposition."],"geography":{"basis":"The report was prepared for, and the trial held in, a Texas lawsuit over an explosion in Houston. Where the expert lives is not used.","court_countries":["US"],"event_countries":["US"],"affected_person_countries":[]},"publication":{"basis":"Published as a concrete adverse consequence of AI use: reports from transcripts and discovery records show the expert used ChatGPT to prepare his report, and CBS News reports that 3M's attorneys removed him from their witness list after his deposition and the plaintiffs subpoenaed him over his prompts.","reviewed_on":"2026-10-17"},"ai_involvement":{"basis":"404 Media and CBS News report from transcripts and discovery records that the expert used ChatGPT to prepare his report, quoting a prompt asking it to show how 3M was 0% at fault, and the expert acknowledged using AI to help draft it. ChatGPT's output reached the expert and went into the report (communicated_with); 3M's attorneys then removed him from their witness list, CBS News reports. How much of the report ChatGPT wrote is disputed between the plaintiffs and the expert's lawyer.","status":"supported"},"person_relations":["communicated_with"]},"name":"3M dropped an expert witness in a Houston explosion trial after discovery showed he had used ChatGPT to draft his report, CBS News reports","summary":"In a 2026 Texas trial over 3M's role in the January 2020 Watson Grinding explosion in Houston, which killed three people, an engineering expert retained for 3M used ChatGPT to prepare his expert report, according to discovery records and transcripts reviewed by 404 Media and CBS News. One prompt asked ChatGPT to show how 3M was 0% at fault for the explosion. The plaintiffs' lawyers, who found a citation overlay document and then hundreds of pages of prompts, said ChatGPT produced more than 80% of the report. Under questioning, the expert acknowledged using AI to help draft the report but defended his research. CBS News reports that after the deposition 3M's attorneys removed him from their witness list, and the plaintiffs subpoenaed him to testify about his prompts at trial. The expert's lawyer said he did not delegate his opinions to ChatGPT and called public characterisations a selective distortion of the record; 3M said he was an independent witness who used AI as a tool after reaching his own conclusions. The jury found 3M negligent and the court awarded the victims $61.5 million; 3M said it would appeal.","incidentDate":"2026-01-01","incidentKind":"single_event","incidentDatePrecision":"year","exposurePattern":"repeated_interactions","reportedDate":"2026-08-17","aiSystem":"ChatGPT, used by an engineering expert retained for 3M to prepare an expert report; discovery produced hundreds of pages of his prompts","aiProduct":"ChatGPT","severity":"low","verificationStatus":"credible","harmCategories":[],"harmOutcomes":["professional_harm","reputational_harm"],"harmOutcomeSummary":"According to CBS News, the expert was removed from 3M's witness list after his ChatGPT use was exposed at deposition, then subpoenaed by the plaintiffs to testify about his prompts at trial.","frameworkFacets":[],"causationStatus":"supported","participantUsersAffectedMin":1,"otherPeopleHarmedMin":0,"affectedCountStatus":"exact","affectedCountEvidence":"One person: the expert who used ChatGPT and was removed from 3M's witness list (CBS News). The explosion victims' harm predates and is unrelated to the AI use, so they are not counted.","victimAgeRange":"adult","jurisdiction":"US-TX","platformType":"other","outcomeType":"internal_action","outcomeStatus":"resolved","primarySourceUrl":"https://www.yahoo.com/news/us/articles/ai-backfires-expert-witness-trial-171000342.html","primarySourceLabel":"CBS News (via Yahoo News), Use of AI backfires on an expert witness in court (18 September 2026)","firstPublishedAt":"2026-10-17T03:12:28.606981+00:00","updatedAt":"2026-10-17T03:12:28.606981+00:00","scopeVersion":"facts-v3","tags":["united-states","texas","expert-witness","litigation","chatgpt"]},{"id":"2026-los-angeles-court-sanctions-state-farm-outside-lawyer-for-motions-citing-non-existent-cases-from-ai-tool","caseFacts":{"claims":[{"id":"c1","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"An attorney for State Farm who filed several motions citing nonexistent cases and fabricated quotes generated by AI software must pay a $999.99 sanction, a Los Angeles judge ruled","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"A Los Angeles judge ordered the State Farm attorney who filed several motions citing non-existent cases and fabricated quotations generated by AI software to pay a $999.99 sanction.","causal_attribution":"Law360's report of the order; the order itself was not inspected."},{"id":"c2","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"To assist in my preparation of these motions, I utilized an Artificial Intelligence program called \"Irys.\" However, I regrettably did not check some of the cites I chose to include in the filed pleadings ... there were seven (7) case citations across State Farm's eight (8) motions in limine that simply did not exist","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"},{"locator":"used an AI tool called Irys, which she incorrectly thought was tied to her law firm","relation":"supports","source_id":"s3"}],"assertion":"In a declaration, the associate who prepared the motions said she used an AI program called Irys to prepare them, did not check some of the citations because she wrongly believed the program was cite-checked through the firm's Westlaw subscription, and confirmed seven case citations across eight motions in limine that did not exist.","causal_attribution":"The associate's own declaration (reproduced by Reason and summarised by CalMatters); one origin."},{"id":"c3","status":"corroborated","evidence":[{"locator":"informed the Court that they had discovered several citations in State Farm's motion in limine filings that were \"fabricated\" and possibly \"hallucinations.\"","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"},{"locator":"were brought to the court's attention during a status hearing on Aug. 7","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"},{"locator":"shared his findings at an Aug. 7 conference in Los Angeles Superior Court","relation":"supports","source_id":"s3"}],"assertion":"The plaintiff's lawyers found the non-existent citations and raised them with the court at a status conference on 7 August 2026.","causal_attribution":"The associate's declaration and the plaintiff side's own filings (as reported by Law360 and CalMatters) agree on the discovery and its date."},{"id":"c4","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"he had discovered seven made-up cases, nine quotes for orders that did not exist and 13","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"According to a declaration by one of the plaintiff's lawyers, the filings contained seven made-up cases, nine quotations from orders that did not exist and 13 fabricated holdings or statements of law.","causal_attribution":"The plaintiff lawyer's declaration as reported by Law360."},{"id":"c5","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"acknowledged the firm had discovered “nonexistent case citations which appear to have been AI hallucinations” across a recent batch of motions","relation":"supports","source_id":"s4"},{"locator":"apologized to the court and to the plaintiff, explaining that his co-counsel told him she used AI to help prepare some filings","relation":"supports","source_id":"s3"}],"assertion":"The firm acknowledged citations that appeared to be AI hallucinations, and its lead trial counsel apologised to the court and to the plaintiff, saying his co-counsel told him she had used AI to help prepare some filings.","causal_attribution":"The firm's own filings, as reported by the Los Angeles Times and CalMatters."},{"id":"c6","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"particularly as it relates to State Farm's first five motions in limine which our office filed and served on March 31, 2026","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"}],"assertion":"The associate's declaration ties the issue particularly to the first five motions in limine, which the firm filed and served on 31 March 2026.","causal_attribution":"The associate's declaration."},{"id":"c7","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"The sum falls several thousand dollars below the maximum penalty, $5,000, that Judge Bradley said she was considering when setting the sanctions hearing","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"According to Law360, the judge had said in late August that she was considering a sanction of up to $5,000; the $999.99 set is one cent below the level that requires a California court to notify the State Bar.","causal_attribution":"Law360's report of the two orders."},{"id":"c8","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"State Farm expects its external counsel to conform to the highest level of ethical standards and professionalism, including in their use of AI and confirming the accuracy of all legal filings","relation":"supports","source_id":"s4"}],"assertion":"State Farm said it expects its outside counsel to meet the highest ethical and professional standards, including in their use of AI and in confirming the accuracy of filings.","causal_attribution":"State Farm spokesperson's statement to the Los Angeles Times."},{"id":"c9","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"I am sincerely apologetic for the inconvenience and waste of time and resources I have forced the Court","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"}],"assertion":"The associate's declaration apologised for the time and resources the court, the plaintiff and the attorneys had to spend on the issue.","causal_attribution":"The associate's declaration."}],"effects":[{"label":"sanctioned $999.99 for motions with non-existent citations prepared with an AI program","claim_id":"c1","direction":"negative"}],"sources":[{"id":"s1","url":"https://www.law360.com/articles/2524716/state-farm-attorney-sanctioned-999-99-for-ai-hallucinations","kind":"news","access":"read","language":"en","translation_note":"Read in full on 2026-10-17 (HTTP 200). Published 14 September 2026; reports the sanction order, the late-August order and the plaintiff lawyer's declaration.","independence_group":"law360-report-of-sanction-order-september-2026"},{"id":"s2","url":"https://reason.com/volokh/2026/08/24/ai-hallucinations-in-state-farm-insurance-outside-lawyers-filings/","kind":"commentary_with_filing_excerpt","access":"read","language":"en","translation_note":"Read on 2026-10-17 (HTTP 200). Published 24 August 2026; reproduces long passages of the associate's declaration and quotes the Los Angeles Times.","independence_group":"state-farm-associate-declaration-august-2026"},{"id":"s3","url":"https://calmatters.org/economy/2026/08/state-farm-lawsuit-ai-hallucinations/","kind":"news","access":"read","language":"en","translation_note":"Read on 2026-10-17 through an Internet Archive capture after the live page returned HTTP 429. Published 18 August 2026; reports filings by both sides.","independence_group":"calmatters-filings-report-august-2026"},{"id":"s4","url":"https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2026-08-19/ai-hallucinations-case-law-state-farm-la-county-fire-dispute","kind":"news","access":"read","language":"en","translation_note":"Read on 2026-10-17 (HTTP 200). Published 19 August 2026.","independence_group":"los-angeles-times-report-august-2026"}],"version":1,"ai_roles":["own_use"],"contexts":["justice","work"],"unknowns":["The text of the sanction order (not inspected; known through Law360).","Which citations Irys generated and which the associate wrote; the sources give only the totals.","Whether the false citations affected any ruling on the motions in limine; no source says so.","Whether the plaintiff incurred costs beyond the time spent identifying the citations; no source quantifies it."],"geography":{"basis":"The motions were filed in, and the sanction imposed by, Los Angeles County Superior Court in California. Where the associate lives is not used.","court_countries":["US"],"event_countries":["US"],"affected_person_countries":[]},"publication":{"basis":"Published as a concrete adverse consequence of AI use: the associate's declaration says the AI program Irys was used to prepare motions that contained seven non-existent case citations, and the court sanctioned the associate $999.99 for them, according to Law360's report of the order.","reviewed_on":"2026-10-17"},"ai_involvement":{"basis":"The associate's declaration says she used the AI program Irys to prepare the motions and did not check some of the citations included in them; her review found seven non-existent case citations across eight motions, and the firm acknowledged citations that appeared to be AI hallucinations. The program's output reached the associate and went into the filings (communicated_with), and the court sanctioned the associate for them, Law360 reports. The tool's output itself is not reproduced in the inspected sources.","status":"supported"},"person_relations":["communicated_with"]},"name":"Los Angeles judge sanctions State Farm's outside lawyer $999.99 over motions citing non-existent cases; the lawyer said she prepared them with the AI tool Irys","summary":"A Los Angeles County Superior Court judge ordered a senior associate at Musick, Peeler & Garrett, the outside firm defending State Farm in a homeowner's lawsuit over a fire-damaged home, to pay a $999.99 sanction after the associate's motions in limine cited cases, quotations and holdings that did not exist, Law360 reported on 14 September 2026. In a declaration reproduced by Reason's Volokh Conspiracy, the associate said she used an AI program called Irys to prepare the motions, did not check some of the citations, and wrongly believed the program was cite-checked through the firm's Westlaw subscription; she confirmed seven non-existent case citations across eight motions. The plaintiff's lawyers found the citations and raised them at a status conference on 7 August 2026. The firm acknowledged citations that appeared to be AI hallucinations, and its lead trial counsel apologised to the court and the plaintiff. According to Law360, the judge had considered up to $5,000, and the amount set is one cent below the level at which California law requires a court to notify the State Bar.","incidentDate":"2026-03-31","incidentEndDate":"2026-09-11","incidentKind":"single_event","incidentDatePrecision":"day","exposurePattern":"unknown","reportedDate":"2026-08-18","aiSystem":"Irys, an AI legal research program that the lawyer told the court she used to prepare the motions; Law360 says it appears to be the tool built by Iqidis Inc.","aiProduct":"Irys (reported)","severity":"low","verificationStatus":"credible","harmCategories":[],"harmOutcomes":["financial_loss","legal_harm"],"harmOutcomeSummary":"According to Law360's report of the order, the associate who filed the AI-assisted motions was sanctioned $999.99; the associate's declaration apologised for the time and resources the court, the plaintiff and the attorneys spent on the false citations.","frameworkFacets":[],"causationStatus":"supported","participantUsersAffectedMin":1,"otherPeopleHarmedMin":0,"affectedCountStatus":"exact","affectedCountEvidence":"One person: the associate the court sanctioned (Law360). The associate's declaration apologises for time and resources that the court, the plaintiff and the attorneys spent on the issue; no further consequence for the plaintiff is described, so the plaintiff is not counted.","victimAgeRange":"adult","jurisdiction":"US-CA","platformType":"other","outcomeType":"regulatory_action","outcomeStatus":"resolved","primarySourceUrl":"https://www.law360.com/articles/2524716/state-farm-attorney-sanctioned-999-99-for-ai-hallucinations","primarySourceLabel":"Law360, State Farm Attorney Sanctioned $999.99 For AI Hallucinations (14 September 2026)","firstPublishedAt":"2026-10-17T03:02:07.57541+00:00","updatedAt":"2026-10-17T03:02:07.57541+00:00","scopeVersion":"facts-v3","tags":["united-states","california","legal-profession","hallucinated-citations","court-sanction","insurance-litigation"]},{"id":"2026-woman-says-classmate-sent-ai-undressed-image-of-her-to-contacts-police-refused-case-pending-examination","caseFacts":{"claims":[{"id":"c1","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'Девушка рассказала, что в июле этого года ей стало известно, что ее знакомые получили рассылку ее фотографии, оголенной с помощью ИИ.'; 'Оказалось, это фото было сгенерировано ИИ. На фотографии стоит голая девушка с моим лицом.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"In July 2026 acquaintances of the woman received a nude image with her face that, according to her, had been generated with AI from her photograph.","causal_attribution":"The woman's account as reported by Kaktus.media; the image itself was not seen and no examination result is reported."},{"id":"c2","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'В ходе разговора он все же признался в том, что лично раздевал через ИИ мою \"фотографию\", которую он скачал с моей страницы в Instagram.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"The woman says the sender, a classmate, admitted to her that he had undressed her Instagram photo through AI himself.","causal_attribution":"The woman's account of the accused's admission; he does not repeat this admission in his statement to the outlet."},{"id":"c3","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'По юношеской неосторожности я воспользовался Telegram-ботом, который предлагал услуги обработки фотографий с помощью искусственного интеллекта, и ввел присланный им код подтверждения.'; 'Как только я получил результат, я был в шоке от полученного и сразу удалил переписку с ботом и забыл об этом.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"In a written statement the accused says he used a Telegram bot offering AI photo processing in May or June 2022, followed its example and was shocked by the result.","causal_attribution":"The accused's own statement relayed in full by Kaktus.media; he does not say what the result showed."},{"id":"c4","status":"disputed","evidence":[{"locator":"'Через 4 года, в ночь с 11 на 12 июля 2026 года, с моего аккаунта были разосланы изображения нескольким моим контактам.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"},{"locator":"'Полагаю, что историю о взломе он выдумал позже, чтобы избежать ответственности'; 'специалисты кибербезопасности ГУУР ранее поставили под сомнение его версию о создании изображения в 2022 году, так как на тот момент у ботов еще не было такой функции.'","relation":"contradicts","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"The accused says the images were sent to several of his contacts from his Telegram account on the night of 11 to 12 July 2026 by people who had hacked it.","causal_attribution":"The accused's account; the woman says he invented the hacking story later and that GUUR cybersecurity specialists doubted his 2022 timeline (her account)."},{"id":"c5","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'Девушка признается, что после этого испытала сильный психологический стресс и даже сейчас, спустя несколько месяцев, переживает сильное волнение.'; 'Нанес большой вред моей репутации, поставив мою честь и достоинство под угрозу.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"The woman says she suffered severe psychological stress, still feels strong anxiety months later, and that the image harmed her reputation.","causal_attribution":"Her own account as reported by the outlet; no clinical assessment is reported."},{"id":"c6","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'Девушка обратилась в прокуратуру в связи с недоверием к следствию Октябрьского РУВД, после чего дело передали в УВД Первомайского района.'; 'В УВД Первомайского района редакции сообщили, что в связи с истечением установленного срока рассмотрения материала до получения результатов экспертизы принято решение об отказе в возбуждении уголовного дела. Вместе с этим была назначена новая экспертиза.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"She complained to the prosecutor's office about the first district police department handling her complaint and the matter moved to another district department, which later told Kaktus.media that it had refused to open a criminal case because the review period expired before expert results arrived, and had ordered a new examination.","causal_attribution":"The transfer is from the outlet's narrative; the refusal and new examination are the police department's reply to the outlet."},{"id":"c7","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'В общей сложности мы подавали четыре ходатайства, все были поданы 5 августа.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"Her lawyer says four motions filed on 5 August, including one for a technical examination, have not been answered.","causal_attribution":"The lawyer's statement to the outlet."}],"effects":[{"label":"nude AI-generated image of a woman sent to acquaintances","claim_id":"c1","direction":"negative"},{"label":"reported psychological stress and reputational harm","claim_id":"c5","direction":"negative"}],"sources":[{"id":"s1","url":"https://kaktus.media/doc/554280_razdeli_fotografiu_cherez_ii_i_razoslali_znakomym._devyshka_jalyetsia_na_zatiagivanie_dela.html","kind":"news_report","access":"read","language":"ru","translation_note":"Read in Russian by the research agent (an AI) on 2026-10-17 and translated by the research agent (an AI) into English; no human translator or reviewer was involved. Kaktus.media report, 9 October 2026 (17:02), with the woman's account, her lawyer's comments, the accused's written statement and the district police department's reply; HTTP 200. An open.kg copy of the same article was read and is the same account (not cited).","independence_group":"kaktus-media-9-oct-2026"}],"version":1,"ai_roles":["others_use"],"contexts":["privacy","relationships","justice"],"unknowns":["Who made the image, when, and with which tool; no technical examination result is reported.","Who sent the image and whether the accused's Telegram account was hacked.","How many people received the image.","The outcome of the new examination and whether a criminal case will be opened."],"geography":{"basis":"The article names district internal-affairs departments, a prosecutor's office and Bishkek time but does not name the country or city where the image was made or sent; the accused says he was abroad at the time and the lawyer says recipients study abroad. Countries are left unknown rather than inferred from the outlet or the police units.","court_countries":[],"event_countries":[],"affected_person_countries":[]},"publication":{"basis":"Published as a core case (depicted_or_impersonated): the accused's own statement that he used an AI photo-processing bot and the woman's account of his admission indicate that an AI tool produced the nude image of her that acquaintances received; no technical examination result is reported. Her account and the accused's denial of sending it are both attributed; neither is named.","reviewed_on":"2026-10-17"},"ai_involvement":{"basis":"The accused's own written statement says he used a Telegram bot offering AI photo processing and got a result that shocked him, and the woman says he admitted undressing her Instagram photo through AI. His statement presents that bot use as the start of the events that led to the images sent from his account, and the nude image with her face is the depiction that was sent to acquaintances and that she says caused her stress and reputational harm. The tool is not named, no technical examination result is reported, and who sent the image is disputed.","status":"reported"},"person_relations":["depicted_or_impersonated"]},"name":"Woman says a classmate sent an AI-undressed image of her to his contacts; he says his account was hacked, and police refused a case pending an examination","summary":"A 23-year-old woman told the news site Kaktus.media that in July 2026 she learned that acquaintances had received a nude image of her made with AI from her photograph, and that the sender was a classmate. She says he first told her an app had generated and sent the image by itself, then admitted that he had undressed her Instagram photo through AI himself. In a written statement to the outlet the accused says he used a Telegram bot offering AI photo processing in May or June 2022 and was shocked by the result, and that the images were sent from his Telegram account on the night of 11 to 12 July 2026 by people who had hacked it. The woman says she suffered severe psychological stress and harm to her reputation. She filed a complaint with a district police department on 21 July; after she complained to the prosecutor's office the matter moved to another district department. That department told Kaktus.media that, because the review period expired before expert results arrived, it had refused to open a criminal case and had ordered a new examination. Her lawyer says four motions filed on 5 August have gone unanswered.","incidentDate":"2026-07-01","incidentKind":"single_event","incidentDatePrecision":"month","exposurePattern":"unknown","reportedDate":"2026-10-09","aiSystem":"A Telegram bot offering AI photo processing, according to the accused's written statement; the woman says he admitted undressing her photo through AI. No product is named.","aiProduct":"Unidentified image tool","severity":"medium","verificationStatus":"credible","harmCategories":[],"harmOutcomes":["exploitation_or_abuse","psychological_distress","reputational_harm"],"harmOutcomeSummary":"According to her account in Kaktus.media, a woman was depicted in a nude AI-generated image that was sent to acquaintances, and she reports severe psychological stress and reputational harm.","frameworkFacets":[],"causationStatus":"supported","participantUsersAffectedMin":0,"otherPeopleHarmedMin":1,"affectedCountStatus":"exact","affectedCountEvidence":"One person: the woman depicted in the image (Kaktus.media: 'ее фотографии, оголенной с помощью ИИ'). The recipients are an audience and are not counted; she says investigators told her seven people received it and she questions that figure.","victimAgeRange":"adult","platformType":"other","outcomeType":"investigation_opened","outcomeStatus":"pending","primarySourceUrl":"https://kaktus.media/doc/554280_razdeli_fotografiu_cherez_ii_i_razoslali_znakomym._devyshka_jalyetsia_na_zatiagivanie_dela.html","primarySourceLabel":"Kaktus.media, 9 October 2026: a woman says her photo was undressed with AI and sent to acquaintances, and complains of delay","firstPublishedAt":"2026-10-17T03:02:03.374824+00:00","updatedAt":"2026-10-17T03:02:03.374824+00:00","scopeVersion":"facts-v3","tags":["sexual_deepfake","telegram_bot","police_complaint"]},{"id":"2026-canary-islands-high-court-fines-lawyer-for-appeal-citing-48-false-judgments-generated-by-ai","caseFacts":{"claims":[{"id":"c1","status":"documented","evidence":[{"locator":"ha impuesto una multa de 420 euros a un abogado como autor de una actuación contraria al deber de veracidad y a las reglas de la buena fe con abuso del servicio público de la Justicia, consumada al introducir hasta 48 citas de jurisprudencia falsas, generadas por Inteligencia Artificial, en un recurso de apelación; el Tribunal acuerda dar traslado de su decisión y de los antecedentes al Colegio de Abogados del afectado","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"The Criminal Chamber of the TSJC fined a lawyer 420 euros for conduct contrary to the duty of truthfulness and good faith, committed by inserting up to 48 false case-law citations generated by AI into an appeal, and sent its decision to the lawyer's bar association for possible disciplinary action.","causal_attribution":"The court's own release on its order."},{"id":"c2","status":"documented","evidence":[{"locator":"se valió de una herramienta de Inteligencia Artificial “generalista” -es decir, no de una solución específicamente diseñada en el ámbito jurídico- para introducir en la fundamentación hasta 48 citas de sentencias del Tribunal Supremo y un informe del Consejo General del Poder Judicial que supuestamente avalaban su postura en el pleito y que, en realidad, no existían, según verificó la documentalista del TSJC; no verificó los datos de salida de la herramienta de IA con las bases de datos de jurisprudencia","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"According to the order, the lawyer used a general-purpose AI tool, not a legal-specific one, to insert 48 citations of Supreme Court judgments and a General Council of the Judiciary report that did not exist, as the TSJC's documentalist verified, and did not check the tool's output against the case-law databases.","causal_attribution":"The court's findings in its order as set out in its release; the lawyer admitted the facts (c3)."},{"id":"c3","status":"documented","evidence":[{"locator":"420 euros, la mitad del coste aproximado de una suscripción anual a una herramienta de Inteligencia Artificial específicamente jurídica; admitió los hechos y reconoció su responsabilidad de forma expresa, manifestando un arrepentimiento “aparentemente sincero”","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"The court set the fine at about half the annual subscription cost of a legal-specific AI tool, taking into account that the lawyer admitted the facts, expressly accepted responsibility and expressed apparently sincere remorse.","causal_attribution":"The court's release."},{"id":"c4","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"el letrado citó al menos siete resoluciones del Supremo y un informe que no aparecen en las bases de datos; fio su trabajo, sin mayor revisión, a lo que el algoritmo le propuso; desestima el recurso de la acusación particular contra la absolución; la sala ordena formar pieza separada","relation":"supports","source_id":"s3"}],"assertion":"In a judgment dismissing the appeal, reported on 5 January 2026, the TSJC found that it cited at least seven Supreme Court rulings and a report absent from the databases, said the lawyer appeared to have relied without further review on what the algorithm proposed, and ordered a separate proceeding on the lawyer's responsibility.","causal_attribution":"Expansión's report of the court's press note and its quotations from the judgment."},{"id":"c5","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"regretted that his identity had been revealed when the case became public; he had been the object of “comments and mockery in different professional environments, including group chats of lawyers of which I am a part”; it sees itself obliged to make clear that the Communication Office did not incur in any reprehensible conduct","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"}],"assertion":"In the sanction proceeding the lawyer complained that the case's publication made the lawyer identifiable and led to comments and mockery in professional circles, including lawyers' group chats; the court said its communication office had not acted improperly.","causal_attribution":"The lawyer's submissions as recorded in the order, reported by La Voz de Lanzarote; the mockery followed the publicity about the AI citations."}],"effects":[{"label":"fined 420 euros and referred to the bar association over false citations generated with an AI tool","claim_id":"c1","direction":"negative"},{"label":"the lawyer told the court of comments and mockery from colleagues after the case became public","claim_id":"c5","direction":"negative"}],"sources":[{"id":"s1","url":"https://www.poderjudicial.es/cgpj/es/Poder-Judicial/Noticias-Judiciales/El-TSJ-de-Canarias-multa-a-un-abogado-por-citar-hasta-48-sentencias-falsas-sugeridas-por-IA","kind":"court_press_release","access":"read","language":"es","translation_note":"Read in Spanish on 2026-10-16 from the Poder Judicial website (HTTP 200); quoted passages were translated by the research agent (an AI). Dated 13 February 2026 in the page metadata.","independence_group":"tsjc-canarias-sanction-order-february-2026"},{"id":"s2","url":"https://www.lavozdelanzarote.com/en/news/courts/lawyer-who-cited-non-existent-sentences-made-by-artificial-intelligence-is-ordered-to-pay-fine_241336_102.html","kind":"news","access":"read","language":"en","translation_note":"Read on 2026-10-16 (HTTP 200) in La Voz de Lanzarote's English edition, a translation of its Spanish report; its account repeats the court's release and adds passages from the order on the lawyer's submissions. Published 13 February 2026.","independence_group":"tsjc-canarias-sanction-order-february-2026"},{"id":"s3","url":"https://www.expansion.com/juridico/actualidad-tendencias/2026/01/05/695bae72e5fdeac6088b4595.html","kind":"news","access":"read","language":"es","translation_note":"Read in Spanish on 2026-10-16 (HTTP 200); quoted passages were translated by the research agent (an AI). Published 5 January 2026; reports the TSJC's press note and quotes its judgment.","independence_group":"tsjc-canarias-appeal-judgment-january-2026"}],"version":1,"ai_roles":["own_use"],"contexts":["justice","work"],"unknowns":["The name of the AI tool.","The dates on which the appeal was filed and the sanction order was issued (the order was announced on 13 February 2026). The appeal predates the judgment that Expansión on 5 January 2026 says was notified days earlier, so the false citations were probably filed before 2026; the 2026 date recorded here is the year of the sanction.","Whether the false citations affected the outcome of the appeal; no source says so.","The outcome of the bar association referral."],"geography":{"basis":"The appeal was filed with, and the fine imposed by, the High Court of Justice of the Canary Islands (Spain) against a judgment of the Provincial Court of Santa Cruz de Tenerife. Where the lawyer lives is not recorded from a press headline.","court_countries":["ES"],"event_countries":["ES"],"affected_person_countries":[]},"publication":{"basis":"Published as a concrete adverse consequence of AI use: the TSJC's order, as described in its release, finds that a general-purpose AI tool generated the 48 false citations the lawyer filed, and fines the lawyer 420 euros with a referral to the bar association.","reviewed_on":"2026-10-16"},"ai_involvement":{"basis":"The TSJC's order, as set out in the court's press release, finds that the lawyer used a general-purpose AI tool to insert 48 citations of Supreme Court judgments and a General Council report that did not exist, and that the lawyer did not check the tool's output against the case-law database. The tool's output reached the lawyer and went into the appeal (communicated_with); the court fined the lawyer for it. The lawyer admitted the facts. The tool is not named.","status":"supported"},"person_relations":["communicated_with"]},"name":"Canary Islands high court fines a lawyer 420 euros for an appeal citing 48 non-existent judgments that it says a general-purpose AI tool generated","summary":"The Criminal Chamber of the High Court of Justice of the Canary Islands (TSJC) fined a lawyer 420 euros for breaching the duty of truthfulness and good faith, after an appeal the lawyer filed contained 48 citations of Supreme Court judgments and a report of the General Council of the Judiciary that did not exist. According to the court's order, as described in its press release of 13 February 2026, the lawyer used a general-purpose AI tool to draft the appeal and did not check a single citation against the free public case-law database; the court's documentalist verified that the references were false. The court referred the matter to the lawyer's bar association for possible disciplinary action and set the fine at about half the annual cost of a legal-specific AI tool, taking into account that the lawyer admitted the facts and expressed remorse. The court had first flagged the citations in its judgment dismissing the appeal, reported on 5 January 2026, which opened a separate proceeding. The lawyer told the court of comments and mockery from colleagues after the case became public.","incidentDate":"2026-01-01","incidentKind":"single_event","incidentDatePrecision":"year","exposurePattern":"unknown","reportedDate":"2026-01-05","aiSystem":"A general-purpose generative AI tool (not a legal-specific product, per the court) used to draft a criminal appeal; the tool is not named","aiProduct":"Unidentified AI drafting tool","severity":"low","verificationStatus":"credible","harmCategories":[],"harmOutcomes":["financial_loss","legal_harm","reputational_harm"],"harmOutcomeSummary":"According to the TSJC, a lawyer whose appeal contained 48 false citations generated with a general-purpose AI tool was fined 420 euros and referred to the bar association; the lawyer told the court of mockery in professional circles once the case became public.","frameworkFacets":[],"causationStatus":"established","participantUsersAffectedMin":1,"otherPeopleHarmedMin":0,"affectedCountStatus":"exact","affectedCountEvidence":"One person: the lawyer fined by the TSJC. The client's position is not described as affected by the false citations, so the client is not counted.","victimAgeRange":"adult","jurisdiction":"ES","platformType":"other","outcomeType":"regulatory_action","outcomeStatus":"resolved","primarySourceUrl":"https://www.poderjudicial.es/cgpj/es/Poder-Judicial/Noticias-Judiciales/El-TSJ-de-Canarias-multa-a-un-abogado-por-citar-hasta-48-sentencias-falsas-sugeridas-por-IA","primarySourceLabel":"Poder Judicial (CGPJ), El TSJ de Canarias multa a un abogado por citar hasta 48 sentencias falsas sugeridas por IA (13 February 2026)","firstPublishedAt":"2026-10-16T03:07:45.067439+00:00","updatedAt":"2026-10-16T03:07:45.067439+00:00","scopeVersion":"facts-v3","tags":["spain","legal-profession","hallucinated-citations","court-fine","bar-referral"]},{"id":"2026-new-york-federal-court-defaults-client-and-orders-lawyer-to-pay-fees-over-ai-generated-false-citations","caseFacts":{"claims":[{"id":"c1","status":"documented","evidence":[{"locator":"'motion to dismiss that was peppered with false citations'; 'Top alerted the Court to a series of faulty citations'; 'Defendants Top Experience Company LLC (“Top”) and'; 'cited that did not exist, and eight cases that did exist but did not contain the quotes'; 'Once again, his brief contained false citations'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"}],"assertion":"In June 2025 the defendant's lawyer filed a brief supporting its motion to dismiss that, a co-defendant's lawyer showed, cited at least thirteen cases that did not exist and eight real cases that did not contain the quoted words; a later response to the court and a proposed reply brief also contained false citations.","causal_attribution":"The court's findings in its sanctions opinion."},{"id":"c2","status":"documented","evidence":[{"locator":"'unreported cases located via Google Scholar, Google search, or the AI-assisted platform vLex, and then cite-checking those cases by running the brief through a different AI program'; 'introduced citation errors that he mistook as corrections and thus neither reviewed nor fixed'; 'I used generative AI to confirm that the information that I wrote was correctly referencing the information that I had'; 'The tool he claimed to use was NotebookLM'; 'The Court does not find the second explanation credible'; 'Court finds that explanation extremely difficult to believe'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"}],"assertion":"The lawyer said he located unreported cases through Google Scholar, Google search and the AI-assisted platform vLex, cite-checked the brief by running it through AI programs (vLex or Paxton AI) that he said introduced the errors, and used NotebookLM to review the content of his response; the court did not find his account of how the errors arose credible and found his NotebookLM account extremely difficult to believe.","causal_attribution":"Documented as the lawyer's statements recorded by the court; his account of how the errors arose is his own and the court rejected it in part."},{"id":"c3","status":"documented","evidence":[{"locator":"'by submitting false citations to the Court produced by generative artificial intelligence (“AI”) and then lying about their genesis'; 'had acted in bad faith'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"The court later described the sanctioned conduct as submitting false citations produced by generative AI and then lying about their origin, and recalled its finding that the lawyer acted in bad faith.","causal_attribution":"The court's own characterisation in the 9 October 2026 order."},{"id":"c4","status":"documented","evidence":[{"locator":"'by striking Affable’s submissions and entering default judgment against it'; 'nor a client from its attorney’s misdeeds'; 'to enter judgment in favor of Plaintiffs and against Affable Avenue LLC'; 'Dated: February 5, 2026'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"},{"locator":"'Court imposed terminal sanctions on Affable'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"On 5 February 2026 the court sanctioned the lawyer by striking his client's motion papers and entering default judgment against the client, holding that a client is not excused from its lawyer's misdeeds.","causal_attribution":"The court's order; the court ties the sanction to the false citations."},{"id":"c5","status":"documented","evidence":[{"locator":"'then-counsel to Defendant Top Experience Company LLC (“Top”), who had provided substantial assistance to the Court by investigating and reporting'; 'awards his firm $38,877.59'; 'for a total award of $38,877.59'; 'must be made by'; 'within 30 days of this Opinion, unless'; 'Dated: October 9, 2026'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"On 9 October 2026 the court awarded the firm of a co-defendant's former lawyer, who had investigated and reported the false citations, $38,877.59 in fees and costs, payable by the sanctioned lawyer within 30 days.","causal_attribution":"The court's order."}],"effects":[{"label":"client's motion papers struck and default judgment entered against it as a sanction on its lawyer","claim_id":"c4","direction":"negative"},{"label":"lawyer ordered to pay $38,877.59 in fees and costs","claim_id":"c5","direction":"negative"}],"sources":[{"id":"s1","url":"https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.nysd.633195/gov.uscourts.nysd.633195.364.0.pdf","kind":"court_record","access":"read","language":"en","translation_note":"Read in full in English by the research agent (an AI) on 2026-10-16 from CourtListener RECAP storage (HTTP 200, text extracted with pdftotext); no translation was needed. ECF 364, 18 pp.","independence_group":"sdny-24-civ-9429-court-orders"},{"id":"s2","url":"https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.nysd.633195/gov.uscourts.nysd.633195.227.0.pdf","kind":"court_record","access":"read","language":"en","translation_note":"Read in full in English by the research agent (an AI) on 2026-10-16 from CourtListener RECAP storage (HTTP 200, text extracted with pdftotext); no translation was needed. ECF 227, 33 pp.","independence_group":"sdny-24-civ-9429-court-orders"}],"version":1,"ai_roles":["own_use"],"contexts":["justice","work"],"unknowns":["Which tool generated each false citation; the lawyer's account names several tools and the court rejected parts of it.","Whether the lawyer has paid the award, appealed, or been referred to a disciplinary body; neither order mentions a referral.","The amount of damages to be assessed against the defaulted client."],"geography":{"basis":"The filings were made in, and the sanctions imposed by, the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York. Where the lawyer and the client are based is not used.","court_countries":["US"],"event_countries":["US"],"affected_person_countries":[]},"publication":{"basis":"Published because the court's two orders, read in full, record the lawyer's own account of using AI tools to find and check citations, describe the false citations as produced by generative AI, and impose default judgment on his client and a $38,877.59 fee award on him because of them.","reviewed_on":"2026-10-16"},"ai_involvement":{"basis":"The lawyer told the court he found cases through the AI-assisted platform vLex and cite-checked his brief by running it through AI programs (vLex or Paxton AI), which he said introduced the errors, and that he used NotebookLM to review a later submission (communicated_with). The court's 9 October 2026 order describes the sanctioned filings as false citations produced by generative AI. The court read those citations and, because of them, struck the client's papers, entered default judgment against the client and ordered the lawyer to pay fees (informed_decision_about). Which tool generated each false citation is not established.","status":"supported"},"person_relations":["communicated_with","informed_decision_about"]},"name":"New York federal court enters default judgment against a defendant and orders its lawyer to pay $38,877 after false citations it found AI produced","summary":"In a federal trademark suit in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, the court on 5 February 2026 struck a company defendant's motion papers and entered default judgment against it as a sanction on its lawyer, after his filings repeatedly cited nonexistent cases and misattributed quotations. The lawyer said he had found and cite-checked cases with AI tools (vLex and Paxton AI) and used NotebookLM to review a later submission; the court rejected his explanations and found he acted in bad faith. On 9 October 2026 the court described the citations as produced by generative AI and ordered the lawyer to pay $38,877.59 in fees and costs to the firm of a co-defendant's former lawyer, who had reported the false citations to the court.","incidentDate":"2026-02-05","incidentEndDate":"2026-10-09","incidentKind":"bounded_series","incidentDatePrecision":"day","exposurePattern":"repeated_interactions","reportedDate":"2026-02-05","aiSystem":"AI legal research and cite-checking tools the lawyer said he used (vLex with AI functionality, Paxton AI) and NotebookLM, which he said he used to review his response to the court; the court found the citations were produced by generative AI","aiProduct":"vLex, Paxton AI and NotebookLM (reported)","severity":"medium","verificationStatus":"credible","harmCategories":[],"harmOutcomes":["legal_harm","professional_harm","financial_loss"],"harmOutcomeSummary":"According to the court's orders, the defendant's motion papers were struck and default judgment entered against it as a sanction for its lawyer's filings with false citations, which the court describes as produced by generative AI, and the lawyer was ordered to pay $38,877.59 in fees and costs.","frameworkFacets":[],"causationStatus":"established","participantUsersAffectedMin":1,"otherPeopleHarmedMin":0,"affectedCountStatus":"partial","affectedCountEvidence":"One person counted: the lawyer, who described his own use of AI tools and was ordered to pay $38,877.59. The client against which default judgment was entered is a company; the people behind it are not described and are not counted.","victimAgeRange":"adult","jurisdiction":"US-NY","platformType":"other","outcomeStatus":"ongoing","primarySourceUrl":"https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.nysd.633195/gov.uscourts.nysd.633195.364.0.pdf","primarySourceLabel":"U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, Opinion and Order on fees, ECF 364, 24 Civ. 9429 (9 October 2026)","firstPublishedAt":"2026-10-16T03:05:26.378079+00:00","updatedAt":"2026-10-16T03:05:26.378079+00:00","scopeVersion":"facts-v3","tags":["united-states","new-york","legal-profession","sanction","hallucinated-citations","default-judgment","attorney-fees"]},{"id":"2026-alabama-supreme-court-dismisses-family-trust-appeal-over-lawyer-ai-hallucinated-citations","caseFacts":{"claims":[{"id":"c1","status":"documented","evidence":[{"locator":"'filed briefs in this appeal that contain numerous invalid, inaccurate, and/or irrelevant citations to legal authorities'; 'They appear to be artificial-intelligence (\"AI\") \"hallucinations,\" i.e., fake authorities created by an AI system'; 'Most of the legal authorities in the briefs are misquoted or nonexistent'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"The appellants' lawyer filed briefs whose citations the court found numerous, invalid, inaccurate or irrelevant, most of them misquoted or nonexistent, and which the court said appear to be AI hallucinations.","causal_attribution":"The court's own findings."},{"id":"c2","status":"documented","evidence":[{"locator":"'first use of an AI research tool that summarized commentary not readily available through standard legal databases'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"In a reply-brief footnote quoted by the court, the lawyer attributed two misquotations to an AI research tool that summarised commentary.","causal_attribution":"The lawyer's statement as quoted in the opinion."},{"id":"c3","status":"documented","evidence":[{"locator":"'Hall admitted that many of the legal authorities in his briefs do not exist and that he improperly used AI to obtain those authorities'; 'Hall also informed the Court that he had self-reported his actions to the Alabama State Bar'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"At the 4 February 2026 show-cause hearing the lawyer admitted that many authorities in his briefs did not exist and that he had improperly used AI to obtain them, and said he had self-reported to the Alabama State Bar.","causal_attribution":"The court's record of the hearing."},{"id":"c4","status":"documented","evidence":[{"locator":"'Because those briefs are grossly deficient under the Alabama Rules of Appellate Procedure, we dismiss the appeal'; 'the dismissal of this appeal is imposed as a sanction because of the particularly egregious facts before us'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"The court dismissed the appeal because the briefs were grossly deficient, and said the dismissal was imposed as a sanction because of the particularly egregious facts.","causal_attribution":"Established by the opinion."},{"id":"c5","status":"documented","evidence":[{"locator":"'Hall is hereby ordered to pay attorney fees and costs'; 'in the amount of $17,200'; 'Hall is ordered to pay double costs'; 'We also refer Hall to the Alabama State Bar for potential discipline'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"The court ordered the lawyer to pay $17,200 in attorney fees and costs and double costs of the appeal, and referred him to the Alabama State Bar for potential discipline.","causal_attribution":"Established by the opinion."},{"id":"c6","status":"documented","evidence":[{"locator":"'SELLERS, Justice (concurring in part and dissenting in part)'; 'I do not agree that dismissal of the appeal is appropriate as a sanction for the conduct of a lawyer'; 'I would affirm the judgment of the Mobile Circuit'; 'MENDHEIM, Justice (concurring in part and dissenting in part)'; 'I concur in the dismissal of this appeal'; 'His representation on appeal was of no benefit to them'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"Justice Sellers, concurring in part and dissenting in part, disagreed that dismissal was an appropriate sanction for a lawyer's conduct but would have affirmed the trial court's judgment on the merits; Justice Mendheim, who concurred in the dismissal, wrote that the lawyer's representation on appeal was of no benefit to the clients.","causal_attribution":"Two separate opinions in the same record; neither is the court's holding."}],"effects":[{"label":"two appellants' appeal was dismissed as a sanction because their lawyer's briefs relied on AI-obtained authorities that were fake or misquoted","claim_id":"c4","direction":"negative"},{"label":"the lawyer was ordered to pay $17,200 and double costs, barred from filing alone in the court and referred to the state bar","claim_id":"c5","direction":"negative"}],"sources":[{"id":"s1","url":"https://publicportal-api.alappeals.gov/courts/68f021c4-6a44-4735-9a76-5360b2e8af13/cms/case/47683AFC-2F85-469D-8562-9DCA094BB680/docketentrydocuments/D95CDD15-7428-4CC9-8389-3CC27AC88089","kind":"court_record","access":"read","language":"en","translation_note":"Read in full in English by the research agent (an AI) on 2026-10-14 from CourtListener's archived copy of this court PDF (storage.courtlistener.com, HTTP 200, text extracted with pdftotext) because the court portal URL returned HTTP 403 to the agent; no translation was needed.","independence_group":"alabama-supreme-court-sc-2025-0106"}],"version":1,"ai_roles":["own_use","others_use"],"contexts":["justice","work","relationships"],"unknowns":["Which AI tool the lawyer used; the opinion names none.","Whether the dismissal changed the clients' substantive position; the trial court's summary judgment stands, the main opinion does not decide the merits, and one justice would have affirmed the judgment.","The outcome of the Alabama State Bar referral."],"geography":{"basis":"The appeal was decided by the Supreme Court of Alabama on appeal from the Mobile Circuit Court. The appellants' residence is not used.","court_countries":["US"],"event_countries":["US"],"affected_person_countries":[]},"publication":{"basis":"Published because the Supreme Court of Alabama's opinion establishes that it dismissed two appellants' appeal as a sanction after their lawyer filed briefs built on fabricated authorities that he admitted he had obtained by improperly using AI, and that it sanctioned the lawyer and referred him to the state bar. The opinion was read in full.","reviewed_on":"2026-10-14"},"ai_involvement":{"basis":"The court found the briefs' authorities appeared to be AI hallucinations, the lawyer admitted at the show-cause hearing that he had improperly used AI to obtain authorities that do not exist, and his reply-brief footnote quoted by the court says an AI research tool misattributed quotations. The AI output reached the court through the briefs, and the court dismissed the clients' appeal because those briefs rested on fabricated authorities (informed_decision_about for the clients); the lawyer received the fabricated output from the tool (communicated_with) and was sanctioned.","status":"supported"},"person_relations":["communicated_with","informed_decision_about"]},"name":"Alabama Supreme Court dismisses two siblings' family-trust appeal as a sanction after their lawyer admits using AI that produced fake citations","summary":"On 24 April 2026 the Supreme Court of Alabama dismissed an appeal by two siblings in a family dispute over living trusts because their lawyer, W. Perry Hall, had filed briefs in which most of the legal authorities were misquoted or did not exist. The court said they appeared to be AI hallucinations, and at a show-cause hearing in February 2026 Hall admitted that many authorities did not exist and that he had improperly used AI to obtain them. The court ordered Hall to pay the opposing party's fees and costs of $17,200 and double appeal costs, barred him from filing in the court without a co-signing attorney and referred him to the Alabama State Bar. It said the dismissal was imposed as a sanction because of the particularly egregious facts. One justice, concurring in part and dissenting in part, objected to dismissing the appeal as a sanction for the lawyer's conduct but would have affirmed the judgment against the clients on the merits.","incidentDate":"2026-04-24","incidentKind":"single_event","incidentDatePrecision":"day","exposurePattern":"unknown","reportedDate":"2026-04-24","aiSystem":"An AI research tool that, according to the lawyer's reply-brief footnote quoted by the court, summarised legal commentary and misattributed quotations; the lawyer admitted using AI to obtain authorities that do not exist. No product is named in the opinion","aiProduct":"Unidentified AI research tool","severity":"medium","verificationStatus":"credible","harmCategories":[],"harmOutcomes":["legal_harm","professional_harm","financial_loss"],"harmOutcomeSummary":"According to the Supreme Court of Alabama, the siblings' appeal was dismissed as a sanction because their lawyer's briefs relied on authorities that were misquoted or did not exist, which he admitted he had obtained by improperly using AI; the lawyer was ordered to pay $17,200 in fees and costs plus double appeal costs and was referred to the state bar.","frameworkFacets":[],"causationStatus":"established","participantUsersAffectedMin":1,"otherPeopleHarmedMin":2,"affectedCountStatus":"exact","affectedCountEvidence":"One AI user: the appellate lawyer, sanctioned and referred to the bar. Two other people: the two appellants whose appeal was dismissed. The appellee, whose fees were reimbursed, is not counted.","victimAgeRange":"adult","jurisdiction":"US-AL","platformType":"other","outcomeType":"regulatory_action","outcomeStatus":"resolved","primarySourceUrl":"https://publicportal-api.alappeals.gov/courts/68f021c4-6a44-4735-9a76-5360b2e8af13/cms/case/47683AFC-2F85-469D-8562-9DCA094BB680/docketentrydocuments/D95CDD15-7428-4CC9-8389-3CC27AC88089","primarySourceLabel":"Supreme Court of Alabama, opinion in SC-2025-0106 (released 24 April 2026)","firstPublishedAt":"2026-10-14T03:11:52.987847+00:00","updatedAt":"2026-10-14T03:11:52.987847+00:00","scopeVersion":"facts-v3","tags":["united-states","alabama","legal-profession","sanction","hallucinated-citations","appeal-dismissed"]},{"id":"2026-spokane-appliance-retailer-spokeswoman-ai-voice-edited-ads-without-consent-lawsuit","caseFacts":{"claims":[{"id":"c1","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'But in February, George noticed on social media that Fred’s, and production company Victory Media, had created a President’s Day advertisement' and 'They were using past footage and bits and pieces from different commercials.' and '“They never once told me what they were doing or asked for my consent.” she said.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"},{"locator":"'The lawsuit alleges that in February, George noticed that the company's President's Day ad was one that she had not recorded' and '‘This is not my voice! These are words I never spoke.''","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"}],"assertion":"In February 2026 George saw a Presidents' Day advertisement for the retailer that she had not recorded, made from past footage with words in her voice that she says she never spoke and was never asked about.","causal_attribution":"George's own account and her lawsuit's allegation; both outlets interviewed her, so it is one witness."},{"id":"c2","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'We acknowledge that we used AI-assisted voice editing to make a limited number of updates to existing advertisements, primarily involving pricing and promotional changes.' and 'Victory Media did not create or publish AI-generated versions of her image or likeness'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"},{"locator":"'We believed those uses were authorized under our spokesperson agreement and were consistent with our contractual rights.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"}],"assertion":"Victory Media said it had used AI-assisted voice editing to make a limited number of updates to existing advertisements, mainly pricing and promotional changes, that it believed its spokesperson agreement authorised them, and that it denies creating or publishing AI-generated versions of her image or likeness.","causal_attribution":"The company's own statement, issued through its lawyer and quoted by both outlets; one origin."},{"id":"c3","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'After she raised concerns, Victory Media and Fred’s offered her an addendum to her contract that would allow them to use artificial intelligence to create more advertisements.' and 'In response, George ended her work with Fred’s Appliance'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"},{"locator":"'the company attempted to introduce an \"AI Addendum\" to her contract, which she refused. She later ended her work with the companies.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"}],"assertion":"After George raised concerns, the companies proposed a contract addendum allowing AI use, which she refused, and she ended her work with the retailer.","causal_attribution":"George's account; KREM attributes the addendum to documents it saw."},{"id":"c4","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'When they use AI, it diminishes my value as a spokeswoman. I can’t monitor or stop what words are coming out of my mouth.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"George said the AI use diminishes her value as a spokeswoman because she cannot control what words come out of her mouth.","causal_attribution":"George's own statement of the effect on her."},{"id":"c5","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'who filed a lawsuit in Spokane Superior Court on Tuesday.' and 'Defendants have engaged in unlawful commercial exploitation of Ms. George’s exclusive property rights involving her past work' and 'The suit names Fred’s Appliance' and 'along with Liberty Lake-based Victory Media and' and 'who is the CEO of Victory Media.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"},{"locator":"'George is seeking damages in an amount to be decided at trial, along with an injunction to prevent the companies from continuing to use her likeness.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"}],"assertion":"George sued Fred's Appliance, Victory Media and its chief executive in Spokane Superior Court, alleging unauthorised commercial use of her voice and likeness and seeking damages and an injunction.","causal_attribution":"Both outlets report the filing and quote the complaint; the complaint itself was not read, and its allegations remain allegations."},{"id":"c6","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'We proactively disclosed the AI-assisted voice edits' and 'Victory Media also noted that Fred's Appliance was unaware of the edits made.' and 'we offered to compensate our former spokesperson rather than engage in costly litigation. That offer was not accepted'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"},{"locator":"'Lam issued a statement later Wednesday indicating that the parties could be close to settling the matter out of court.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"Victory Media said it disclosed the edits when questions were raised, that Fred's Appliance was unaware of the edits, and that it offered compensation that George did not accept; its lawyer later said the parties could be close to settling.","causal_attribution":"The company's statements; George's side of the compensation offer is not reported."}],"effects":[{"label":"advertisements carried AI-edited words in the spokeswoman's voice without her consent, she says","claim_id":"c1","direction":"negative"},{"label":"spokeswoman ended her work with the retailer after refusing an AI contract addendum","claim_id":"c3","direction":"negative"}],"sources":[{"id":"s1","url":"https://www.spokesman.com/stories/2026/jul/01/longtime-spokeswoman-sues-freds-appliance-over-use/","kind":"news_report","access":"read","language":"en","translation_note":"Read in English on 2026-10-12 from the publisher page (full article); no translation was needed and the research agent (an AI) read the text directly.","independence_group":"spokesman-review"},{"id":"s2","url":"https://www.krem.com/article/news/local/spokeswoman-freds-appliance-sues-company-ai/293-bf7aa1fd-0da0-403c-a363-7edf3101f558","kind":"news_report","access":"read","language":"en","translation_note":"Read in English on 2026-10-12 from the MSN syndicated copy of the KREM article (assets.msn.com detail AA27mfrz, provider KREM-TV Spokane); no translation was needed and the research agent (an AI) read the text directly.","independence_group":"krem"}],"version":1,"ai_roles":["institutional_use"],"contexts":["work"],"unknowns":["Which AI tool was used and how many advertisements carried edited words; the company refers to a list of known instances that is not published.","The exact dates the edited advertisements aired; the Presidents' Day spot places the first in February 2026.","Whether the contract authorised the edits, which is the dispute before the court.","Whether George's claims that her image or likeness was altered by AI, beyond the voice, are supported; the company denies them.","Whether the case settled."],"geography":{"basis":"The advertisements were for Fred's Appliance, which has stores in Spokane, Spokane Valley, Coeur d'Alene, Kennewick and Montana, and were produced by Liberty Lake-based Victory Media; George worked for the retailer in that market. The suit is in Spokane Superior Court, Washington.","court_countries":["US"],"event_countries":["US"],"affected_person_countries":["US"]},"publication":{"basis":"Published on the production company's own acknowledgement, quoted by The Spokesman-Review and KREM, that it used AI-assisted voice editing to change existing advertisements voiced by George, together with her account that the edits put words she never spoke in her voice without her consent and that she ended her work after refusing an AI addendum. The AI-edited voice is the described output and her loss of control over her voice and work is the reported harm. Claims stay reported because they rest on George's account, her complaint and the company's statement.","reviewed_on":"2026-10-12"},"ai_involvement":{"basis":"Victory Media's statement, quoted by both outlets, acknowledges \"AI-assisted voice editing to make a limited number of updates to existing advertisements, primarily involving pricing and promotional changes\". George says the Presidents' Day advertisement used words in her voice that she never recorded (\"This is not my voice! These are words I never spoke.\"). The AI-edited voice is the output that presented her as saying words she had not said, and it is what her refusal of the AI addendum, the end of her work with the retailer and her lawsuit concern. The tool is not named, and the company denies any AI alteration of her image.","status":"reported"},"person_relations":["depicted_or_impersonated"]},"name":"Spokane: an appliance retailer's longtime spokeswoman sues after its ad agency admits AI voice edits to her ads; she says she never consented","summary":"Amber George was the spokeswoman for Fred's Appliance, a Spokane-area retailer, for 14 years. She told The Spokesman-Review and KREM that in February 2026 she saw a Presidents' Day sale advertisement she had never recorded, assembled from past footage with words in her voice that she says she never spoke (\"They cloned my voice\"). Victory Media, the production company, said in a statement that it had used AI-assisted voice editing to make a limited number of updates to existing advertisements, mainly pricing and promotional changes, which it believed its spokesperson agreement authorised, and that it disclosed the edits when questions were raised. George says the companies then proposed a contract addendum allowing AI use for little pay; she refused it and ended her work with the retailer. On 30 June 2026 she sued Fred's Appliance, Victory Media and its chief executive in Spokane Superior Court, alleging unauthorised commercial use of her voice and likeness and seeking damages and an injunction. Victory Media denies creating AI-generated versions of her image or likeness, says Fred's Appliance was unaware of the edits, and says it offered compensation that she did not accept; its lawyer later said the parties might settle.","incidentDate":"2026-02-01","incidentKind":"bounded_series","incidentDatePrecision":"month","exposurePattern":"single_interaction","reportedDate":"2026-07-01","aiSystem":"Unnamed AI-assisted voice editing used by the production company Victory Media to change words in existing Fred's Appliance advertisements voiced by the spokeswoman","aiProduct":"Unidentified voice-cloning tool","severity":"low","verificationStatus":"credible","harmCategories":[],"harmOutcomes":["professional_harm"],"harmOutcomeSummary":"George says advertisements carried words in her voice that she never spoke and was never asked about, that the AI use diminishes her value as a spokeswoman because she cannot control what words come out of her mouth, and that she ended her 14-year work with the retailer after refusing an AI addendum. These are her own and her lawsuit's allegations; the companies say the edits were authorised by contract.","frameworkFacets":[],"causationStatus":"supported","participantUsersAffectedMin":0,"otherPeopleHarmedMin":1,"affectedCountStatus":"exact","affectedCountEvidence":"One person: Amber George, whose voice was edited in the advertisements and who brought the suit. Viewers of the advertisements are an audience and are not counted.","victimAgeRange":"adult","jurisdiction":"US-WA","platformType":"other","outcomeType":"lawsuit_filed","outcomeStatus":"pending","primarySourceUrl":"https://www.spokesman.com/stories/2026/jul/01/longtime-spokeswoman-sues-freds-appliance-over-use/","primarySourceLabel":"The Spokesman-Review, 1 July 2026: Longtime spokeswoman sues Fred's Appliance over use of AI likeness","firstPublishedAt":"2026-10-12T03:13:14.78748+00:00","updatedAt":"2026-10-12T03:13:14.78748+00:00","scopeVersion":"facts-v3","tags":["voice-cloning","ai-voice-editing","advertising","spokesperson","consent","likeness","lawsuit","spokane","depicted-or-impersonated","institutional-use"]},{"id":"2026-colorado-state-senator-ai-deepfake-video-ballot-measure-ad-disclosure-complaint","caseFacts":{"claims":[{"id":"c1","status":"corroborated","evidence":[{"locator":"'The organization released a deepfake video depicting Kipp as a grocery store clerk who keeps a customer' and 'the AI-generated version of Kipp says in the deepfake'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"},{"locator":"'whether a video from a libertarian think tank generated with artificial intelligence violates a state law' and 'Kipp is portrayed as a grocery store clerk refusing to give a customer their change, saying in a harsh tone that management decided to keep all change in order to fund education.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"}],"assertion":"The Independence Institute posted a video, generated with AI, in which a likeness of state Sen. Cathy Kipp appears as a grocery store clerk who keeps a customer's change and says it is to help educate children.","causal_attribution":"The AI generation of the likeness is described by both outlets and is not disputed by the institute."},{"id":"c2","status":"corroborated","evidence":[{"locator":"'She filed a campaign finance complaint alleging the video violates a state law that bars deepfakes of candidates or current lawmakers unless they have a disclosure'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"},{"locator":"'filed a complaint with the office on Aug. 5 against the Independence Institute' and 'It is the first complaint \"filed within the statutory timeframe required for consideration,\" according to Jack Todd, a spokesperson for the secretary of state'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"}],"assertion":"Kipp filed a campaign finance complaint with the Colorado Secretary of State's office alleging that the video violates a state law requiring disclosure on deepfakes of candidates and officeholders.","causal_attribution":"The complaint is documented by both outlets; whether the video violates the law is disputed and unresolved."},{"id":"c3","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'filed a complaint with the office on Aug. 5 against the Independence Institute' and 'The Secretary of State' and 'decided to investigate the allegations on Aug. 19 and has a deadline of Sept. 18.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"}],"assertion":"The complaint was filed on 5 August 2026 and the Secretary of State's office decided on 19 August to investigate, with a deadline of 18 September.","causal_attribution":"Procedural dates rest on Colorado Newsline alone."},{"id":"c4","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'it is disturbing and wrong to use a deepfake, AI-generated video of someone without their consent,'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"},{"locator":"'We should not allow the rampant misuse of AI and the spread of false information to become normalized in our elections.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"Kipp said it is disturbing and wrong to use a deepfake, AI-generated video of someone without their consent, and that the misuse of AI and the spread of false information should not be normalised in elections.","causal_attribution":"Her own statement; it describes her objection to the depiction and does not establish any further consequence."},{"id":"c5","status":"corroborated","evidence":[{"locator":"'The Independence Institute disclaimer is not only smaller, it says simply, \"AI generated content because who gets a human cashier these days?\"'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"},{"locator":"'There is a small disclosure visible for about three seconds that reads, \"AI generated content because who gets a human cashier these days?\"'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"}],"assertion":"The video displayed only a small line reading \"AI generated content because who gets a human cashier these days?\" rather than the statutory disclosure wording.","causal_attribution":"Both outlets describe the on-screen text; whether it meets the statute is the disputed legal question."},{"id":"c6","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'He says the video is also satire, which the law exempts.' and 'Caldara says the law applies to content concerning candidates and the content in his video is regarding a ballot initiative.' and 'a violation of the First Amendment.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"},{"locator":"'He filed a motion to dismiss Kipp' and 'He plans to sue Kipp and the state for his attorney fees.' and 'But he says the ad is obviously satire and parody.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s3"}],"assertion":"The Independence Institute says the video is satire, which the law exempts, that the law applies to candidates rather than ballot measures, and that applying it would violate the First Amendment; its lawyer filed a motion to dismiss and said he plans to sue Kipp and the state for attorney fees.","causal_attribution":"The institute's position and its lawyer's statements, reported by CBS Colorado."},{"id":"c7","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'But the state elections division has a different take. It says satire and parody are \"grounded in humor.\" The deepfake, they say, isn' and 'comic relief but political advocacy.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s3"}],"assertion":"The state elections division says the video is political advocacy rather than satire or parody.","causal_attribution":"The elections division position as reported by CBS Colorado; no ruling is reported."}],"effects":[{"label":"a state senator was depicted without her consent in an AI-generated political video saying and doing things she did not say or do","claim_id":"c1","direction":"negative"},{"label":"she filed a campaign finance complaint over the video, which the institute contests","claim_id":"c2","direction":"negative"}],"sources":[{"id":"s1","url":"https://www.cbsnews.com/colorado/news/deepfake-video-colorado-state-lawmaker-complaint/","kind":"news_report","access":"read","language":"en","translation_note":"Read in English by the research agent (an AI) on 2026-10-11 from the CBS Colorado syndicated copy on the MSN content API (assets.msn.com, provider CBS Colorado, same title, author and text); the cbsnews.com page returned HTTP 406 to the fetcher. No translation was needed and no human reviewer inspected the text.","independence_group":"cbs-colorado-kipp-deepfake"},{"id":"s2","url":"https://www.yahoo.com/news/politics/articles/colorado-sen-cathy-kipp-submits-203651449.html","kind":"news_report","access":"read","language":"en","translation_note":"Read in English by the research agent (an AI) on 2026-10-11 on the Yahoo News syndicated copy of the Colorado Newsline article (coloradonewsline.com returned HTTP 403 to the fetcher). No translation was needed and no human reviewer inspected the text.","independence_group":"colorado-newsline-kipp-deepfake"},{"id":"s3","url":"https://www.cbsnews.com/colorado/news/deepfake-ad-colorado-state-senator-prompts-court-case/","kind":"news_report","access":"read","language":"en","translation_note":"Read in English by the research agent (an AI) on 2026-10-11 from the CBS Colorado syndicated copy on the MSN content API (assets.msn.com, provider CBS Colorado, same title, author and text); the cbsnews.com page returned HTTP 406 to the fetcher. No translation was needed and no human reviewer inspected the text.","independence_group":"cbs-colorado-kipp-deepfake"}],"version":1,"ai_roles":["others_use"],"contexts":["elections","public_life"],"unknowns":["Which AI tool produced the video, and the date it was first posted (the reports place it after the April 2026 Senate floor remarks and before the 5 August complaint).","Whether the Secretary of State's office or any court has ruled on the complaint or on the motion to dismiss.","How many people viewed the video or took it for genuine footage; no report measures viewers' understanding."],"geography":{"basis":"The video concerns a Colorado ballot measure and a Colorado state senator, and the complaint was filed with the Colorado Secretary of State's office, per both outlets. The proceeding reported is an administrative campaign finance complaint, so no court country is recorded.","court_countries":[],"event_countries":["US"],"affected_person_countries":["US"]},"publication":{"basis":"Published as an impersonation case involving a public official: an AI-generated likeness of a Colorado state senator was used in a political video she did not consent to, and she filed a complaint under the state deepfake disclosure law that the Secretary of State's office is investigating. Two reporting chains were read (CBS Colorado, two reports by the same reporter, and Colorado Newsline). The AI generation of the likeness is undisputed; whether it deceives viewers or breaks the law is disputed and recorded as such.","reviewed_on":"2026-10-11"},"ai_involvement":{"basis":"CBS Colorado and Colorado Newsline both describe the video as generated with artificial intelligence: CBS reports that it shows \"an AI-generated deepfake of Kipp as a store clerk\" and quotes the line \"the AI-generated version of Kipp says\", and Newsline describes \"a video from a libertarian think tank generated with artificial intelligence\" in which Kipp is portrayed as a clerk refusing to give a customer change. The video itself carried the text \"AI generated content\". The generated likeness is the harm the senator complains of: she says it is wrong to use \"a deepfake, AI-generated video of someone without their consent\". The tool is not named. The institute does not dispute that the video is AI-generated; it disputes that it is deceptive.","status":"reported"},"person_relations":["depicted_or_impersonated"]},"name":"Colorado: state senator files complaint over think tank's AI deepfake video depicting her as a cashier keeping change; group calls it satire","summary":"The Independence Institute, a libertarian-leaning Colorado think tank opposing Proposition NN on the November 2026 ballot, posted a video on its social media accounts in which an AI-generated likeness of Democratic state Sen. Cathy Kipp, who sponsored the bill that referred the measure to voters, appears as a grocery store clerk who keeps a customer's change and says it will help educate children. CBS Colorado reported that the institute made the video in response to remarks Kipp made on the Senate floor in April 2026. Kipp filed a campaign finance complaint with the Colorado Secretary of State's office on 5 August 2026, according to Colorado Newsline, alleging that the video lacked the disclosure a 2024 state law requires on deepfakes of candidates and officeholders; the video carried only a small line reading \"AI generated content because who gets a human cashier these days?\". Kipp said it was \"disturbing and wrong to use a deepfake, AI-generated video of someone without their consent\". The office decided on 19 August to investigate; a spokesperson said it was the first complaint filed within the statutory timeframe for consideration. The institute says the video is satire, which the law exempts, that the law covers candidates rather than ballot measures, and that applying it would violate the First Amendment. CBS Colorado reported on 9 October 2026 that the institute's lawyer had filed a motion to dismiss and planned to sue Kipp and the state for attorney fees, and that the state elections division disputed the satire defence. No decision is reported.","incidentDate":"2026-01-01","incidentKind":"single_event","incidentDatePrecision":"year","exposurePattern":"unknown","reportedDate":"2026-08-21","aiSystem":"Unnamed generative AI tool used by the Independence Institute to produce a video depicting the senator; the video carried the on-screen text \"AI generated content\". No tool is named in the inspected reports.","aiProduct":"Unidentified video tool","severity":"low","verificationStatus":"credible","harmCategories":[],"harmOutcomes":["reputational_harm"],"harmOutcomeSummary":"According to her complaint and statements reported by CBS Colorado and Colorado Newsline, the senator was depicted without her consent in an AI-generated political video showing her saying and doing things she did not say or do, which she called a misuse of AI and the spread of false information in an election. The institute disputes that the video is deceptive and calls it obvious satire. No other harm is reported.","frameworkFacets":[],"causationStatus":"disputed","participantUsersAffectedMin":0,"otherPeopleHarmedMin":1,"affectedCountStatus":"exact","affectedCountEvidence":"One person: the senator depicted in the AI-generated video, who filed the complaint. Viewers of the video, voters and the institute are not counted as harmed persons.","victimAgeRange":"adult","jurisdiction":"US-CO","platformType":"other","outcomeType":"investigation_opened","outcomeStatus":"ongoing","primarySourceUrl":"https://www.cbsnews.com/colorado/news/deepfake-video-colorado-state-lawmaker-complaint/","primarySourceLabel":"CBS Colorado, 21 August 2026: Colorado state lawmaker files complaint over a deepfake video with Secretary of State's Office","firstPublishedAt":"2026-10-11T03:25:23.152269+00:00","updatedAt":"2026-10-11T07:27:57.312914+00:00","scopeVersion":"facts-v3","tags":["deepfake","ai-generated-video","election","ballot-measure","colorado","public-figure","depicted"]},{"id":"2026-nrw-woman-instagram-photos-ai-altered-used-in-online-sex-ad-police-complaint","caseFacts":{"claims":[{"id":"c1","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'Ende Juni fragt sie ein Nutzer auf Instagram, seit wann sie sexuelle Dienstleistungen anbiete und ob sie das wirklich sei. Kurz darauf erhält sie von ihm entsprechende Screenshots'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"},{"locator":"'Mit ihrem Gesicht wirbt der Täter unter anderem auf dem öffentlichen Internetportal Markt.de mit Sextreffen, Swingerpartys oder weiteren sexuellen Dienstleistungen'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"},{"locator":"'Ein Unbekannter hat eine Sexanzeige mit ihrem Gesicht auf der Onlineplattform Markt.de geschaltet, auf der er sexuelle Dienstleistungen anbietet'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"},{"locator":"'Im Juni dieses Jahres bekommt die ... von einem Internet-User eine Nachricht und fällt aus allen Wolken'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"At the end of June 2026 an Instagram user asked the woman since when she offered sexual services and sent her screenshots; an unknown person had placed an ad with her face on the classifieds platform Markt.de advertising sex meetings and other sexual services.","causal_attribution":"The woman's own account as told to two outlets; both rest on the same witness and the screenshots she received, so the claim is reported."},{"id":"c2","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'Die Bilder stammen von ihrem Instagram-Kanal und wurden zum Teil mit KI verändert - ein Fall von Deepfake. Wie groß das genaue Ausmaß der Fälschungen ist, ist unbekannt'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"},{"locator":"'Die Bilder habe der Täter von ihrem Instagram-Account heruntergeladen'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"},{"locator":"'Es könnte schon vor Monaten angefangen haben. Das Ausmaß kenne ich noch gar nicht'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"}],"assertion":"The pictures in the ad were taken from the woman's public Instagram account and, according to WDR, were partly altered with AI; how many such images exist and when the use began is unknown.","causal_attribution":"WDR's description of the images as partly AI-altered and the woman's account of their origin; no forensic or official characterisation of the images is reported."},{"id":"c3","status":"corroborated","evidence":[{"locator":"'Die 28-Jährige erstattet Anzeige bei der Polizei und schaltet eine Anwältin ein'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"},{"locator":"'Nach Angaben der Staatsanwaltschaft Bielefeld laufen die Ermittlungen'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"},{"locator":"'Sie erstattet sofort Anzeige bei der Polizei, der Fall liegt bei der Staatsanwaltschaft'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"}],"assertion":"She filed a criminal complaint with the police, and the case is with the Bielefeld public prosecutor's office, which says investigations are ongoing.","causal_attribution":"The complaint is her account to both outlets, and the Bielefeld prosecutor's office confirmed to WDR that investigations in her case are ongoing: two distinct origins for the complaint and the open investigation."},{"id":"c4","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'Natürlich könnte der Mann ebenfalls Opfer eines Identitätsdiebstahls geworden sein. Das müssen die weiteren Ermittlungen jetzt zeigen'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"},{"locator":"'Die Beamten haben den mutmaßlichen Täter ermitteln können'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"},{"locator":"'Persönlich kennt sie den Mann nicht. Von einer Kontaktaufnahme, um ihn mit den Vorwürfen zu konfrontieren, nimmt sie aber Abstand'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"},{"locator":"'Die beantragt Akteneinsicht'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"},{"locator":"'Es ist der Name des möglichen Täters, der sich über die Anzeige bei Markt.de ermitteln ließ'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"Her lawyer applied for access to the file and a suspect's name emerged from the Markt.de ad; she does not know the man, and WDR notes he could himself be a victim of identity theft, which the further investigation must show.","causal_attribution":"Her account of what the file access showed, plus WDR's own caveat; no official statement identifies a suspect."},{"id":"c5","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'Die Sexanzeige ist aus dem Netz verschwunden'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"},{"locator":"'Auf ihrem Insta Kanal, mit dem sie rund 25.000 Menschen erreicht, postet sie ein Video und erklärt ihren Followern, was passiert ist'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"},{"locator":"'Das ist einfach rufschädigend und auch menschenverachtend'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"},{"locator":"'Ich bin vorsichtiger geworden, was ich teile'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"}],"assertion":"The ad is no longer online; she went public with a video on her Instagram account, which reaches about 25,000 people, describes the ad as damaging to her reputation and says she has become more careful about what she shares.","causal_attribution":"Her statements to the two outlets and WDR's observation that the ad is gone; the effect on her is self-described."}],"effects":[{"label":"Pictures from a woman's Instagram account, partly AI-altered according to WDR, were used in an online ad offering sexual services with her face","claim_id":"c2","direction":"negative"}],"sources":[{"id":"s1","url":"https://www1.wdr.de/nrw/ostwestfalen-lippe/kreis-minden-luebbecke/deepfake-kunschke-hille-sex-ki-bilder-100.html","kind":"news_report","access":"read","language":"de","translation_note":"German body read and translated by the research agent (an AI) on 2026-10-10; no human translator or reviewer read the text. WDR regional report with video, dated 09.10.2026, 05:03; its source list names an inquiry to the Bielefeld public prosecutor, an inquiry to the Minden-Lübbecke police and a conversation with the woman. Fetched directly, HTTP 200. The URL carries the woman's surname because WDR names her; she went public under her own name.","independence_group":"wdr-report-2026-10-09"},{"id":"s2","url":"https://www.lz.de/owl/24418014_Bilder-als-Angebot-fuer-sexuelle-Dienstleistung-genutzt-Hillerin-wird-Opfer-von-Deepfakes.html","kind":"news_report","access":"read","language":"de","translation_note":"German body read and translated by the research agent (an AI) on 2026-10-10; no human translator or reviewer read the text. Lippische Landes-Zeitung (lz.de) report of 14 September 2026 based on its own interview with the woman; the page is a subscription article whose full text is carried in the page's JSON-LD articleBody, which was read. Fetched directly, HTTP 200. The URL carries the paper's headline, which calls her a Hille resident.","independence_group":"lz-report-2026-09-14"}],"version":1,"ai_roles":["others_use"],"contexts":["privacy","everyday_life"],"unknowns":["When the ad was placed and how many altered images exist; she told the LZ it could have begun months before the end-of-June discovery, and WDR says the extent of the fakes is unknown. incident_date is the month of discovery.","Which tool altered the images and how much of each picture was altered; WDR says 'partly altered with AI' and no official body has characterised the images in the reports.","Who placed the ad and where: a name emerged from the ad, but WDR notes the man could himself be an identity-theft victim; no charge is reported.","Her exact age: the LZ (September) gives 27 and WDR (October) gives 28.","How many people saw or responded to the ad; only the one Instagram user who alerted her is described."],"geography":{"basis":"Both reports place the woman in Hille, North Rhine-Westphalia (WDR's regional desk for the Minden-Lübbecke district; the LZ dateline 'Hille.'), the ad on the German classifieds portal Markt.de, and the complaint with the police and the Bielefeld public prosecutor's office; the discovery and the complaint happened there. Where the unknown ad poster acted is not reported. No court is involved, so court_countries is empty.","court_countries":[],"event_countries":["DE"],"affected_person_countries":["DE"]},"publication":{"basis":"Published as a core case on two German reports with the woman's own account: at the end of June 2026 she learned that pictures from her public Instagram account, partly altered with AI according to WDR, were being used in a Markt.de ad offering sexual services with her face; she filed a criminal complaint, the Bielefeld public prosecutor confirmed to WDR that investigations are ongoing, and the ad has been taken down. She is named in both reports because she went public, and is not named here; the suspect is unnamed in the sources. The AI alteration rests on the broadcaster's description and its extent is unknown.","reviewed_on":"2026-10-10"},"ai_involvement":{"basis":"WDR reports that the pictures used in the Markt.de ad came from the woman's Instagram account and were partly altered with AI ('zum Teil mit KI verändert'), and that someone offered sex meetings with her face; the Lippische Landes-Zeitung writes that she apparently became a victim of deepfakes, images generated or manipulated with AI. The AI alteration of her photographs is what depicts her in the ad (depicted_or_impersonated), and the ad with her face is the harm she reports: being confronted as a provider of sexual services, filing a criminal complaint and changing how she shares online. The description of the images as AI-altered is the broadcaster's; no tool is named, the extent of the alteration is unknown by WDR's own account, and no police or prosecutor characterisation of the images is reported, so the status is reported.","status":"reported"},"person_relations":["depicted_or_impersonated"]},"name":"Woman in NRW, Germany, says AI-altered photos from her Instagram were used in an online sex ad with her face; police complaint filed, prosecutor investigating","summary":"A woman in her late twenties from North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, learned at the end of June 2026 from an Instagram user that her face appeared in an advertisement on the classifieds platform Markt.de offering sex meetings and other sexual services, according to her account to the Lippische Landes-Zeitung (14 September 2026) and WDR (9 October 2026). WDR reports that the pictures came from her public Instagram account and were partly altered with AI; the extent of the manipulation is unknown. She filed a criminal complaint and engaged a lawyer; the Bielefeld public prosecutor's office told WDR that investigations are ongoing, and a suspect was identified through the ad, who the report notes could himself be a victim of identity theft. The ad has been taken down. She went public with a video on her Instagram account and says the experience changed how she shares online.","incidentDate":"2026-06-01","incidentKind":"ongoing_experience","incidentDatePrecision":"month","exposurePattern":"unknown","reportedDate":"2026-09-14","aiSystem":"AI image-manipulation tool, not named; WDR reports that photographs taken from the woman's public Instagram account were partly altered with AI and used in a sex ad on Markt.de","aiProduct":"Unidentified image tool","severity":"medium","verificationStatus":"credible","harmCategories":[],"harmOutcomes":["exploitation_or_abuse","psychological_distress","reputational_harm"],"harmOutcomeSummary":"According to her account to two outlets, an unknown person used pictures from the woman's Instagram account, partly altered with AI per WDR, in a Markt.de ad offering sexual services with her face; an Instagram user confronted her about it, she filed a criminal complaint, describes shock and reputational damage, and says the episode changed how she shares online.","frameworkFacets":[],"causationStatus":"alleged","participantUsersAffectedMin":0,"otherPeopleHarmedMin":1,"affectedCountStatus":"exact","affectedCountEvidence":"One depicted woman, the subject of both reports. The unknown ad poster used the images against her, so participant_users_affected_min is 0. Her Instagram followers and the ad's viewers are not counted.","victimAgeRange":"adult","jurisdiction":"DE","platformType":"other","outcomeType":"investigation_opened","outcomeStatus":"ongoing","primarySourceUrl":"https://www1.wdr.de/nrw/ostwestfalen-lippe/kreis-minden-luebbecke/deepfake-kunschke-hille-sex-ki-bilder-100.html","primarySourceLabel":"WDR (Ostwestfalen-Lippe), 9 Oct 2026: woman finds sex ads with AI-altered pictures of herself online","firstPublishedAt":"2026-10-10T03:44:15.101135+00:00","updatedAt":"2026-10-10T03:44:15.101135+00:00","scopeVersion":"facts-v3","tags":["deepfake","non_consensual_intimate_imagery","impersonation","instagram","classifieds_platform","police_complaint","germany"]},{"id":"2026-wisconsin-cooke-van-orden-ai-deepfake-videos-cease-and-desist","caseFacts":{"claims":[{"id":"c1","status":"documented","evidence":[{"locator":"'Take, for example, the video posted to your X account on August 4, 2026.'; 'in Eau Claire with former President Biden seated behind her.'; 'to take advantage of as much corruption as possible and give every illegal alien free healthcare.'; 'The video is pure fiction. The events depicted did not occur. Ms. Cooke never made the statements attributed to her.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"},{"locator":"'The letter specifically cites an AI video that Derrick Van Orden posted to his X account on Aug. 4, 2026.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s3"}],"assertion":"A cease-and-desist letter sent on behalf of Cooke for Congress on 30 September 2026 says Van Orden posted to his X account on 4 August 2026 a video purporting to show Cooke speaking on the campaign trail in Eau Claire with former President Biden seated behind her and attributing to her the statement that she seeks to take advantage of as much corruption as possible and give every illegal alien free healthcare; the letter says the events did not occur and she never made the statements.","causal_attribution":"The letter documents the campaign's description and allegation; it is a party's document, and the post itself was not inspected."},{"id":"c2","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'has repeatedly used artificial intelligence to post videos to his X account, showing Cooke saying things she never said.'; 'The videos posted to that platform come with an automatic label, indicating that they were made with \"Grok Imagine,\" an AI image and video generator.'; 'Let the peasants eat cake. They will vote for me anyway.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"},{"locator":"'your pattern of posting misleading AI-generated videos that falsely attribute statements to Ms. Cooke that she did not make'; 'posting myriad such videos.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"}],"assertion":"Van Orden has repeatedly posted AI-generated videos to his X account showing Cooke saying things she never said, including an AI-generated version of her saying 'Let the peasants eat cake. They will vote for me anyway', and the videos carry an automatic label indicating they were made with Grok Imagine.","causal_attribution":"Wisconsin Public Radio's own description of the posts and their platform label, with the campaign letter alleging a pattern; whether the statements are false is the candidate's account."},{"id":"c3","status":"documented","evidence":[{"locator":"'for the patently obvious purpose of harming Ms. Cooke’s reputation for your own political advantage'; 'deepfake statute only applies to communications by Wisconsin committees, and thus does not apply to federal candidates.'; 'Wisconsin’s common law of defamation fills the gaps yet remaining in Wisconsin’s statutory protections against fake AI'; 'we will evaluate all legal options to address that misconduct.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"}],"assertion":"The letter alleges the videos are posted for the purpose of harming her reputation for political advantage, says Wisconsin's deepfake statute applies only to communications by Wisconsin committees and not to federal candidates, invokes the common law of defamation, and warns that her lawyers will evaluate all legal options if the conduct persists.","causal_attribution":"The letter establishes what the campaign alleges and threatens; the defamation allegation is untested."},{"id":"c4","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'is instead spending his time and energy producing AI videos putting words in my mouth'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"},{"locator":"'is instead spending his time and energy producing AI videos putting words in my mouth, pretending that I said things that I didn'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s3"}],"assertion":"Cooke said in a statement that Van Orden is spending his time and energy producing AI videos putting words in her mouth.","causal_attribution":"The candidate's own statement, issued through her campaign."},{"id":"c5","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'Rebecca Cooke has spent six years running for office, lying to voters about who she is and her record'; 'Van Orden responded to the cease-and-desist letter with another Grok-assisted video.'; 'The short clip includes a red AI-generated duck.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"Van Orden's campaign said Cooke has spent six years running for office lying to voters about who she is and her record, and Van Orden responded to the letter with another Grok-assisted video in which an AI-generated duck says 'Cease and desist!'.","causal_attribution":"Van Orden's campaign release and posts as reported by WPR; his reported responses do not address whether the attributed statements are fabricated."}],"effects":[{"label":"a congressional candidate was depicted in AI-generated videos posted by her opponent saying things she says she never said","claim_id":"c2","direction":"negative"}],"sources":[{"id":"s1","url":"https://www.wpr.org/news/cooke-cease-and-desist-letter-van-orden-ai-deepfakes","kind":"news_report","access":"read","language":"en","translation_note":"Read live on 2026-10-02 (Wisconsin Public Radio, Sarah Lehr, published 1 October 2026). Republished by Urban Milwaukee (also read). The description of the X posts and their Grok Imagine label is the reporter's own; the account of the letter derives from the letter.","independence_group":"wpr"},{"id":"s2","url":"https://drive.google.com/file/d/1cqk8OPoIGN__tQeSgNPW0RqHYJr82Xuo/view","kind":"legal_letter","access":"read","language":"en","translation_note":"Two-page letter dated 30 September 2026 from Ben Stafford, Elias Law Group, on behalf of Cooke for Congress, linked from the WEAU and Urban Milwaukee articles; downloaded from Google Drive on 2026-10-02 and converted with pdftotext. A party's own document: it establishes what the campaign alleges, not that the allegations are true.","independence_group":"cooke-campaign"},{"id":"s3","url":"https://www.weau.com/2026/09/30/rebecca-cooke-sends-derrick-van-orden-cease-desist-over-ai-deepfake-videos/","kind":"local_tv_news","access":"read","language":"en","translation_note":"Read live on 2026-10-02 (WEAU Staff, 30 September 2026). Based on the campaign's press release and the letter; Van Orden's statement to WEAU is announced but its text is not in the retrieved page.","independence_group":"cooke-campaign"}],"version":1,"ai_roles":["others_use"],"contexts":["elections","public_life"],"unknowns":["How many such videos were posted and when the first was posted; 4 August 2026 is the earliest specific post in the inspected sources.","Whether every video was made with Grok Imagine, as the platform label reported for the posts indicates, or with other tools.","Van Orden's statement to WEAU, which was not in the retrieved page.","Whether the campaign will pursue a defamation claim or other legal action."],"geography":{"basis":"The videos concern the race for Wisconsin's 3rd Congressional District, and the 4 August video purports to show the candidate in Eau Claire, Wisconsin (letter, WPR, WEAU). No court is involved.","court_countries":[],"event_countries":["US"],"affected_person_countries":["US"]},"publication":{"basis":"Published as a core case (depicted_or_impersonated) consistent with 2026-texas-goodwin-ai-deepfake-campaign-ads-sheriff-complaint: a candidate's lawyers' letter, read in full, documents the campaign's allegation that her opponent posted AI-generated videos showing her saying things she never said, and Wisconsin Public Radio describes the posts and their Grok Imagine label. The harm is reputational and electoral and is alleged by the candidate; the opponent's campaign disputes her account of her record.","reviewed_on":"2026-10-02"},"ai_involvement":{"basis":"The cease-and-desist letter calls the posts AI-generated deepfake videos, and Wisconsin Public Radio reports that the videos posted to X carry an automatic label indicating they were made with Grok Imagine. The response from Van Orden's campaign quoted by WPR does not address whether the videos are AI-generated (his statement to WEAU was not in the retrieved page), and WPR describes his answer to the letter as another Grok-assisted video.","status":"reported"},"person_relations":["depicted_or_impersonated"]},"name":"Wisconsin: lawyers for congressional candidate Rebecca Cooke sent Rep. Derrick Van Orden a cease-and-desist letter on 30 September 2026 over AI-generated videos posted on his X account that show her making statements she never made; Wisconsin Public Radio reports the videos carry an automatic label indicating Grok Imagine","summary":"Rebecca Cooke, the Democratic challenger in Wisconsin's 3rd Congressional District, says Republican Rep. Derrick Van Orden has repeatedly posted AI-generated videos to his X account that put words in her mouth. A cease-and-desist letter sent on her campaign's behalf on 30 September 2026 by Elias Law Group cites a video posted on 4 August 2026 that purports to show her speaking on the campaign trail in Eau Claire with former President Biden seated behind her and saying she seeks 'to take advantage of as much corruption as possible and give every illegal alien free healthcare'. The letter calls the video 'pure fiction', says she never made the statements, alleges the videos are posted to harm her reputation, and warns that her lawyers will evaluate all legal options. Wisconsin Public Radio reports that the videos posted to X carry an automatic label indicating they were made with Grok Imagine, and quotes two other AI-generated lines attributed to her. Van Orden's campaign accused Cooke of lying to voters about her record, and he answered the letter with another AI video of a duck saying 'Cease and desist!'.","incidentDate":"2026-08-04","incidentKind":"bounded_series","incidentDatePrecision":"day","exposurePattern":"unknown","reportedDate":"2026-09-30","aiSystem":"AI-generated videos depicting the candidate, posted on Rep. Van Orden's X account; Wisconsin Public Radio reports that the videos carry an automatic label indicating they were made with Grok Imagine, an AI image and video generator","aiProduct":"Grok Imagine (reported)","severity":"low","verificationStatus":"credible","harmCategories":[],"harmOutcomes":["reputational_harm"],"harmOutcomeSummary":"A congressional candidate was depicted in AI-generated videos posted by her opponent on X saying things she says she never said; her lawyers' cease-and-desist letter alleges the videos are false and posted to harm her reputation, and the opponent's campaign accuses her of lying about her record.","frameworkFacets":[],"causationStatus":"alleged","participantUsersAffectedMin":0,"otherPeopleHarmedMin":1,"affectedCountStatus":"exact","affectedCountEvidence":"One depicted person, the candidate on whose behalf the letter was sent. Exact 1. Voters said to be misled are not counted.","victimAgeRange":"adult","jurisdiction":"US-WI","platformType":"other","outcomeType":"media_coverage","outcomeStatus":"ongoing","primarySourceUrl":"https://www.wpr.org/news/cooke-cease-and-desist-letter-van-orden-ai-deepfakes","primarySourceLabel":"Wisconsin Public Radio, 1 October 2026: Cooke campaign sends cease-and-desist to Congressman Van Orden over AI deepfakes","firstPublishedAt":"2026-10-02T03:12:28.898646+00:00","updatedAt":"2026-10-02T03:12:28.898646+00:00","scopeVersion":"facts-v3","tags":["deepfake","political-deepfake","election","wisconsin","grok-imagine","x","cease-and-desist","depicted-or-impersonated"]},{"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-italy-fideuram-chairman-ai-cloned-lawyer-voice-ceo-impersonation-fraud","caseFacts":{"claims":[{"id":"c1","status":"corroborated","evidence":[{"locator":"'Il 23 febbraio scorso, Molesini era stato contattato con un \"messaggio WhatsApp\" da un \"soggetto che, pur chiamandolo da un numero diverso da quello a lui noto, affermava di essere Carlo Messina, Ceo di Intesa\".'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"},{"locator":"'Tutto precipita in una manciata di ore di febbraio 2026, quando Molesini, allora presidente di Fideuram, riceve (in realtà crede di ricevere, come amaramente si renderà conto di lì a poco) un messaggio WhatsApp da Carlo Messina, amministratore della capogruppo Banca Intesa.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"},{"locator":"'veniva contattato sul proprio cellulare aziendale, tramite messaggio Whatsapp da un soggetto che, pur chiamandolo da un numero diverso da quello a lui noto, affermava essere Carlo Messina.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s3"},{"locator":"'La truffa ai danni di Fideuram, secondo la ricostruzione contenuta in un decreto di sequestro del Tribunale di Milano, comincia il 23 febbraio 2026.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s7"}],"assertion":"On 23 February 2026 Molesini, then chairman of Fideuram, received a WhatsApp message from a number different from the one he knew, from someone claiming to be Intesa Sanpaolo CEO Carlo Messina, announcing that a lawyer would call him to conclude a confidential acquisition of an international bank through Fideuram.","causal_attribution":"ANSA and Il Fatto Quotidiano quote the investigating judge's decree; Corriere reconstructs the same contact from the court papers. Messina is described by all sources as extraneous to the scheme."},{"id":"c2","status":"corroborated","evidence":[{"locator":"'Quell'avvocato, con voce finta creata con l'IA, poi lo contattò e gli fece firmare, con \"undici\" documenti inviati, \"un accordo di massima riservatezza\" e con procura speciale all'apparenza \"sottoscritta\" da Messina.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"},{"locator":"'È un avvocato d’affari che Moresini conosce, e se la voce gli sembra proprio quella è perché i truffatori l’hanno replicata ad arte con strumenti di intelligenza artificiale.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"},{"locator":"'Nella stessa giornata un avvocato dello studio A&O Sherman chiama Molesini, ma è sempre l’IA che sta parlando.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s3"},{"locator":"'Con l'intelligenza artificiale era stata riprodotta la voce di Carlo Messina.'","relation":"context","source_id":"s3"},{"locator":"'C’è infine una tecnica che potrebbe aver contribuito alla truffa, ma sulla quale gli atti non offrono ancora una risposta: la possibile imitazione della voce.'","relation":"context","source_id":"s7"}],"assertion":"The same day a caller presenting as a lawyer of A&O Shearman whom Molesini knew, in a voice that ANSA, Il Fatto Quotidiano and Corriere della Sera describe as created with artificial intelligence, had him sign a confidentiality agreement and transmitted eleven payment instructions on the firm's letterhead with a power of attorney apparently signed by Messina.","causal_attribution":"The AI attribution comes from the court's reconstruction as relayed by three newsrooms; no recording, forensic finding or tool is reported. Corriere names the impersonated lawyer as Paolo Nastasi, managing partner of A&O Shearman Italia, wholly extraneous and unaware. Il Fatto Quotidiano's summary line attributing the AI voice to Messina (context evidence) conflicts with the decree passages it quotes."},{"id":"c3","status":"corroborated","evidence":[{"locator":"'Ed è così che il direttore finanziario di Fideuram, a ciò istruito dal presidente di Fideuram, che a sua volta crede di realizzare il compito affidatogli dal numero uno di Banca Intesa, fa partire i soldi, per lo più verso Cina e Hong Kong.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"},{"locator":"'Ciò che è reale sono i bonifici successivi per un totale di 95 milioni di euro che partono tra il 23 e il 25 febbraio.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s3"},{"locator":"'anche il responsabile della Tesoreria e \"dei pagamenti\" di Fideuram, lo stesso giorno, sarebbe stato contattato da una persona che fingeva di essere l'ad di Fideuram, il quale gli diceva che Molesini lo avrebbe chiamato per disporre \"bonifici urgenti e riservati\".'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"},{"locator":"'Secondo il decreto, gli undici bonifici raggiungono complessivamente 95,18 milioni di euro.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s7"},{"locator":"'Convinto della legittimità dell’operazione, Molesini aveva dato disposizione al direttore finanziario di Fideuram di eseguire i bonifici.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s4"}],"assertion":"Convinced of the operation, Molesini instructed Fideuram's finance and treasury head, who had himself been contacted by someone posing as Fideuram's CEO, to execute the transfers; eleven transfers totalling about 95 million euros left between 23 and 25 February 2026 to accounts in Portugal and at Bank of China.","causal_attribution":"The judge writes that Molesini and the treasurer were mutually convinced of the operation's urgency and confidentiality and did not contact the top management of Fideuram or Intesa (Il Fatto Quotidiano). The loss fell on the bank, not on Molesini personally."},{"id":"c4","status":"corroborated","evidence":[{"locator":"'La rapidità del riflesso reattivo viene premiata proprio da una banca in Cina, che blocca 40 milioni e li restituisce a Fideuram.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"},{"locator":"'All’appello, però, sinora mancano almeno 36 milioni volatilizzatisi nei vorticosi giri di conti esteri, e a un certo punto convertiti in criptovalute'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"},{"locator":"'con un tentativo di portare via alla banca del gruppo Intesa quasi 95 milioni, di cui, stando agli atti, ora mancano all'appello, però, solo 39,5 milioni'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"},{"locator":"'Decreto con cui sono stati congelati oltre 13 milioni su una banca portoghese, mentre 42 li aveva già stoppati Fideuram su conti cinesi.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"},{"locator":"'Ciò che ritorna a Fideuram sono i 42 milioni bonificati alla Bank of China. Dei restanti 52, solo 13 vengono bloccati da Bpi e poi messi sotto sequestro dal Tribunale.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s3"},{"locator":"'Il 25 febbraio, appena due giorni dopo il primo contatto, Banco BPI segnala a Fideuram la natura sospetta delle operazioni.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s7"},{"locator":"'i sistemi di sicurezza interna di Fideuram si allertano rapidamente'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"Fideuram's controls and the Portuguese bank raised the alarm; about 40-42 million euros sent to Bank of China were returned, 13 million were seized at Banco BPI in Portugal, and at least 36 million (39.5 million per the court papers) remain missing after being moved through foreign accounts and converted into cryptocurrency.","causal_attribution":"Figures differ between outlets: Corriere gives 40 million returned and at least 36 million missing; ANSA and Il Fatto Quotidiano, from the decree, give 42 million returned and 39.5 million missing."},{"id":"c5","status":"corroborated","evidence":[{"locator":"'Fideuram - Intesa Sanpaolo Private Banking ha reso noto che Paolo Molesini ha rassegnato le dimissioni dalla carica di presidente della società e di presidente di Intesa Sanpaolo Private Banking, per ragioni personali.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s5"},{"locator":"'Intanto Molesini, non indagato e non destinatario di alcun contenzioso avviato dal proprio istituto, il 12 marzo scorso aveva comunque scelto di dimettersi da presidente (come informò un asettico comunicato di Fideuram) «per ragioni personali».'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"},{"locator":"'Molesini, che non è indagato e non ha ricevuto contestazioni da parte dell’istituto, aveva annunciato a marzo le proprie dimissioni dalla presidenza di Fideuram «per ragioni personali».'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s4"}],"assertion":"Fideuram announced on 12 March 2026 that Molesini had resigned as chairman of Fideuram - Intesa Sanpaolo Private Banking and of Intesa Sanpaolo Private Banking for personal reasons.","causal_attribution":"The company's stated reason is personal; the announcement did not mention the fraud."},{"id":"c6","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'Il manager coinvolto, una volta resosi conto dell’accaduto, ha deciso di rassegnare le dimissioni.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s8"},{"locator":"'Ma il povero presidente ha dovuto presentare le dimissioni.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s7"},{"locator":"'il 12 marzo scorso aveva comunque scelto di dimettersi da presidente'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"Press accounts link the resignation to the fraud: Corriere writes that he had nonetheless chosen to resign, Milano Finanza that once he realised what had happened he decided to resign, and today.it that he had to resign.","causal_attribution":"Journalistic attribution; neither Fideuram nor Molesini has publicly linked the resignation to the fraud in the inspected sources."},{"id":"c7","status":"corroborated","evidence":[{"locator":"'Nel caso di Molesini, che si è dimesso a marzo, è indagato come uno dei componenti della banda un cittadino israeliano di 48 anni.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"},{"locator":"'è risalita almeno a un 48enne israeliano correlato a uno dei conti esteri dove sono atterrati 4 milioni'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s6"},{"locator":"'le rogatorie serviranno a verificare se i suoi documenti corrispondano veramente a una persona in carne ed ossa'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s6"}],"assertion":"A 48-year-old Israeli citizen is under investigation as a member of the gang, named in the investigating judge's seizure decree that froze over 13 million euros at a Portuguese bank; investigators are pursuing the funds with international letters rogatory.","causal_attribution":"Corriere notes it is unverified whether the suspect's identity documents correspond to a real person."},{"id":"c8","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'Intanto Molesini, non indagato e non destinatario di alcun contenzioso avviato dal proprio istituto'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"},{"locator":"'Molesini, che non è indagato e non ha ricevuto contestazioni da parte dell’istituto'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s4"}],"assertion":"Corriere della Sera writes that Molesini is not under investigation and is not the target of any litigation by his institution.","causal_attribution":"Corriere's statement, relayed by La Stampa and others; ANSA and Il Fatto Quotidiano do not address it."}],"effects":[{"label":"deceived by a phone call in an AI-cloned voice and impersonation messages into ordering about 95 million euros of transfers, of which at least 36 million remain missing; resigned as chairman on 12 March 2026, weeks later","claim_id":"c3","direction":"negative"}],"sources":[{"id":"s1","url":"https://milano.corriere.it/notizie/cronaca/26_settembre_25/fideuram-truffa-falso-messaggio-whatsapp-molesini-milioni-d5248b46-a7e7-4130-8c74-e09be5e00xlk.shtml","kind":"news_report","access":"read","language":"it","translation_note":"Read live in Italian on 2026-09-30 (Corriere della Sera Milano, 25 September 2026, byline Luigi Ferrarella; the original reconstruction from the court papers, credited by Il Sole 24 Ore, La Stampa, Il Post, Tgcom24 and Bluerating). Researcher translation.","independence_group":"corriere-ferrarella"},{"id":"s2","url":"https://www.ansa.it/sito/notizie/cronaca/2026/09/25/truffa-da-395-milioni-allex-capo-di-fideuram-un-indagato_f747847d-aaa5-4f5f-9bee-1d476b6bea1e.html","kind":"news_report","access":"read","language":"it","translation_note":"Read live in Italian on 2026-09-30 (ANSA, 25 September 2026; the earlier ANSA URL 'lex-capo-di-fideuram-truffato-con-whatsapp-e-ia-spariti-36-milioni' redirects to this updated item). Quotes the investigating judge's decree directly ('stando agli atti'). Researcher translation.","independence_group":"ansa-decree-read"},{"id":"s3","url":"https://www.ilfattoquotidiano.it/2026/09/25/una-telefonata-dallad-di-intesa-via-ai-bonifici-per-95-milioni-ma-era-tutto-finto-la-storia-della-truffa-a-fideuram-indagato-informatico-israeliano/8518472/","kind":"news_report","access":"read","language":"it","translation_note":"Read live in Italian on 2026-09-30 (Il Fatto Quotidiano, 25 September 2026). Credits Corriere for the story but quotes the five-page seizure decree at length with details absent from Corriere and ANSA (transfer dates and beneficiaries, the real CEO's warning call). Its headline attributes the AI voice to Messina, contrary to the decree passages it quotes. Researcher translation.","independence_group":"fatto-decree-read"},{"id":"s4","url":"https://www.lastampa.it/cronaca/2026/09/25/news/fideuram_truffa_36_milioni_whatsapp_voce_clonata_ai_molesini-15748791/","kind":"news_report","access":"read","language":"it","translation_note":"Read live in Italian on 2026-09-30 (La Stampa, 25 September 2026); explicitly a rewrite of Corriere della Sera's reconstruction. Researcher translation. Its HTML page title reads 'voce del ceo clonata con l'AI', contrary to its own body, which attributes the cloned voice to the lawyer.","independence_group":"corriere-ferrarella"},{"id":"s5","url":"https://www.ansa.it/sito/notizie/economia/risparmio_Investimenti/2026/03/12/paolo-molesini-lascia-la-carica-di-presidente-di-fideuram_34e2dec8-5bba-4ca3-b569-aa638d534e2e.html","kind":"news_report","access":"read","language":"it","translation_note":"Read live in Italian on 2026-09-30 (ANSA, 12 March 2026); relays Fideuram's announcement of the resignation. Researcher translation.","independence_group":"fideuram-announcement"},{"id":"s6","url":"https://milano.corriere.it/notizie/cronaca/26_settembre_26/truffa-fideuram-ifis-frodi-14e046de-a157-4b21-aaf7-444b75961xlk.shtml","kind":"news_report","access":"read","language":"it","translation_note":"Read live in Italian on 2026-09-30 (Corriere della Sera Milano, 26 September 2026); follow-up on the suspect and the money trail; the page's paywall banner appears after the article text, which was complete. Researcher translation.","independence_group":"corriere-ferrarella"},{"id":"s7","url":"https://www.today.it/dossier/economia/banca-fideuram-truffa-milioni-spariti-come-hanno-fatto.html","kind":"news_report","access":"read","language":"it","translation_note":"Read live in Italian on 2026-09-30 (today.it, 29 September 2026); cites the Milan seizure decree for the transfer dates and the 95.18 million total. It names Fideuram's treasury head, who is not named in this record. Researcher translation.","independence_group":"today-decree-read"},{"id":"s8","url":"https://www.milanofinanza.it/news/fideuram-intesa-sanpaolo-l-ex-presidente-paolo-molesini-vittima-di-una-truffa-da-36-milioni-202609251035572085","kind":"news_report","access":"read","language":"it","translation_note":"Read live in Italian on 2026-09-30 (Milano Finanza, 25 September 2026); credits Corriere della Sera; cited only for its own statement linking the resignation to the fraud. Researcher translation.","independence_group":"corriere-ferrarella"},{"id":"s9","url":"https://www.reuters.com/legal/government/ai-messaging-scam-costs-italys-top-bank-intesa-millions-sources-say-2026-09-25/","kind":"news_report","access":"unavailable","language":"en","translation_note":"Not read: HTTP 401 on 2026-09-30 and no Internet Archive capture; the Google News title reads 'AI messaging scam costs Italy's top bank Intesa millions, sources say' (25 September 2026).","independence_group":"reuters-sources"}],"version":1,"ai_roles":["others_use"],"contexts":["work","finance"],"unknowns":["Which voice-cloning tool was used and whether any recording or forensic analysis of the call exists; the AI attribution rests on press accounts of the court papers (Corriere della Sera, ANSA, Il Fatto Quotidiano), while today.it, also citing the seizure decree, writes that the court papers do not yet answer whether the voice was imitated.","Whether Molesini's resignation was connected to the fraud: Fideuram gave personal reasons and no source quotes Molesini on the point.","Whether the WhatsApp messages impersonating Messina and Fideuram's CEO or the emails involved any AI tool.","The exact unrecovered amount: 36 million (Corriere) or 39.5 million (ANSA and Il Fatto Quotidiano from the decree).","Whether the named suspect is a real person and whether other suspects have been identified; the Reuters report (sources) was not read."],"geography":{"basis":"The contact reached the chairman of Fideuram, a Milan-based Intesa Sanpaolo subsidiary, and the investigation is by the Milan prosecutors and investigating judge (ANSA; Corriere). Molesini was born in Feltre (ANSA, 12 March 2026) and his career is described in Milan (Il Gazzettino). The transfers went to accounts in Portugal and at Bank of China (Il Fatto Quotidiano) and the seizure in Portugal was obtained with Lisbon authorities under Eurojust, but the court order is the Milan judge's, so only IT is recorded as a court country.","court_countries":["IT"],"event_countries":["IT"],"affected_person_countries":["IT"]},"publication":{"basis":"Published under the 2026-09-15 charter as a core case: an AI-cloned voice communicated with the affected person (a bank chairman, named in his official capacity as all sources do) and impersonated a lawyer he knew, inducing him to order transfers of about 95 million euros, of which at least 36 million remain missing; he resigned on 12 March 2026, weeks later, announced as for personal reasons. Three independent reads of the Milan court papers (Corriere della Sera, ANSA, Il Fatto Quotidiano) plus the March resignation announcement (ANSA). The financial loss fell on the institution; the personal consequence recorded is the deception itself and the resignation as reported.","reviewed_on":"2026-09-30"},"ai_involvement":{"basis":"ANSA ('Quell'avvocato, con voce finta creata con l'IA, poi lo contattò') and Il Fatto Quotidiano ('un avvocato dello studio A&O Sherman chiama Molesini, ma è sempre l'IA che sta parlando'), narrating the investigating judge's seizure decree, and Corriere della Sera's reconstruction from the court papers ('i truffatori l'hanno replicata ad arte con strumenti di intelligenza artificiale') describe the lawyer's voice on the call as created with AI. None of the decree passages these outlets quote verbatim contains the AI attribution, and today.it, which also cites the decree, writes that the court papers do not yet answer whether the voice was imitated ('sulla quale gli atti non offrono ancora una risposta: la possibile imitazione della voce'). No forensic detail, recording or tool is reported. The WhatsApp messages impersonating Messina and the Fideuram CEO and the emails are not described as AI-made in the decree passages quoted. Il Fatto Quotidiano's headline attributes the AI voice to Messina, which its own quoted decree passages do not support. The cloned voice spoke with Molesini (communicated_with) and impersonated the lawyer (depicted_or_impersonated).","status":"reported"},"person_relations":["communicated_with","depicted_or_impersonated"]},"name":"Italy: Fideuram chairman Paolo Molesini is deceived by a WhatsApp impersonation of Intesa Sanpaolo's CEO and a phone call in the reportedly AI-cloned voice of a lawyer he knew into ordering about 95 million euros of transfers; at least 36 million remain missing and he resigned on 12 March 2026, weeks later","summary":"On 23 February 2026 Paolo Molesini, then chairman of Fideuram (the private-banking subsidiary of Intesa Sanpaolo), received a WhatsApp message from an unknown number from someone claiming to be Intesa's chief executive Carlo Messina, announcing a confidential acquisition that had to be executed through Fideuram. The same day a caller presenting as a lawyer of A&O Shearman whom Molesini knew, whose voice ANSA, Il Fatto Quotidiano and Corriere della Sera, reporting from the Milan court papers, describe as created with artificial intelligence (today.it, which also cites the seizure decree, writes that the court papers do not yet answer whether the voice was imitated), had him sign a confidentiality agreement and sent eleven payment instructions; Fideuram's treasury head was separately contacted by someone posing as Fideuram's CEO. Between 23 and 25 February eleven transfers totalling about 95 million euros went to accounts in Portugal and at Bank of China; the bank's alarm systems and the Milan prosecutors recovered about 40-42 million from China and 13 million seized in Portugal, leaving at least 36 million (39.5 million per the court papers) missing after conversion into cryptocurrency. Molesini, who Corriere writes is not under investigation, resigned as chairman on 12 March 2026, which Fideuram announced as being for personal reasons; a 48-year-old Israeli citizen is under investigation as a member of the gang.","incidentDate":"2026-02-23","incidentEndDate":"2026-02-25","incidentKind":"bounded_series","incidentDatePrecision":"day","exposurePattern":"repeated_interactions","reportedDate":"2026-09-25","aiSystem":"Voice of a business lawyer replicated with artificial-intelligence tools for a phone call to the Fideuram chairman, as described by Corriere della Sera, ANSA and Il Fatto Quotidiano in their accounts of the Milan court papers; today.it, also citing the seizure decree, writes that the court papers do not yet answer whether the voice was imitated; the tool is not identified. The WhatsApp messages and emails are not described as AI-made","aiProduct":"Unidentified voice-cloning tool","severity":"medium","verificationStatus":"credible","harmCategories":[],"harmOutcomes":["financial_loss","professional_harm"],"harmOutcomeSummary":"Fideuram lost about 95 million euros in transfers ordered by its deceived chairman, of which at least 36 million (39.5 million per the court papers) remain missing (Corriere della Sera and ANSA, from the Milan seizure decree); the chairman resigned on 12 March 2026, about two and a half weeks after the transfers, announced by the bank as for personal reasons, which Corriere, Milano Finanza and today.it link to the fraud.","frameworkFacets":[],"causationStatus":"supported","participantUsersAffectedMin":1,"otherPeopleHarmedMin":0,"affectedCountStatus":"exact","affectedCountEvidence":"One person, Paolo Molesini, who was called by the AI-cloned voice and induced to order the transfers (ANSA; Corriere; Il Fatto Quotidiano). The impersonated lawyer and the impersonated CEO are not counted; no harm to them is reported. Fideuram's treasury head, contacted by a person posing as Fideuram's CEO (ANSA 'contattato', Il Fatto Quotidiano 'chiamato', today.it 'messaggio WhatsApp'; no source describes AI in that contact), is not counted. Exact 1.","victimAgeRange":"adult","jurisdiction":"IT","platformType":"other","outcomeType":"investigation_opened","outcomeStatus":"ongoing","primarySourceUrl":"https://milano.corriere.it/notizie/cronaca/26_settembre_25/fideuram-truffa-falso-messaggio-whatsapp-molesini-milioni-d5248b46-a7e7-4130-8c74-e09be5e00xlk.shtml","primarySourceLabel":"Corriere della Sera (Milano), 25 September 2026: Il falso messaggio WhatsApp inviato all'ex presidente Fideuram e la telefonata contraffatta con l'AI","firstPublishedAt":"2026-09-30T04:13:31.372024+00:00","updatedAt":"2026-09-30T04:13:31.372024+00:00","scopeVersion":"facts-v3","tags":["voice-cloning","ceo-fraud","impersonation","whatsapp","banking","italy","milan","financial-loss","resignation","criminal-investigation"]},{"id":"2026-italy-siracusano-ai-altered-photo-vannacci-facebook-reggio-by-election","caseFacts":{"claims":[{"id":"c1","status":"corroborated","evidence":[{"locator":"'Una foto ritoccata della sottosegretaria ai Rapporti con il Parlamento e deputata di Forza Italia, Matilde Siracusano, compare sulla pagina Facebook di Roberto Vannacci, leader di Futuro Nazionale.'; 'nella foto originale Siracusano indossa una maglietta bianca sotto la giacca floreale, che però è 'sparita''","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"},{"locator":"'Nell’immagine, realizzata a partire da uno scatto originale del profilo Instagram della parlamentare'; 'La modifica consiste nella scomparsa della maglietta bianca indossata sotto la giacca floreale: al suo posto emerge una scollatura molto più accentuata.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"},{"locator":"'ha pubblicato una foto della compagna del governatore, la sottosegretaria Matilde Siracusano, con una profonda scollatura creata artificialmente'","relation":"context","source_id":"s5"},{"locator":"'Nella fotografia originale di Matilde Siracusano sotto la giacca c’è effettivamente una maglietta chiara.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s4"}],"assertion":"An altered photograph of Matilde Siracusano appeared on Roberto Vannacci's Facebook page in a by-election campaign post; in the original photograph she wears a white top under a floral jacket, and in the posted version the top had disappeared and a deeper neckline appeared in its place.","causal_attribution":"AGI and RaiNews each describe the public post and its difference from the original photograph, and the blog that first published the image concedes that the original shows a light T-shirt; ANSA's phrase 'profonda scollatura creata artificialmente' repeats Mara Carfagna's statement quoted by AGI and Adnkronos (reviewer translation: 'the white top worn under the floral jacket disappears: in its place a much more pronounced neckline emerges'). Who made the alteration is addressed in c2."},{"id":"c2","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'Quella che abbiamo pubblicato -afferma ancora il blog- non era una fotografia reale. Era un’immagine elaborata con l’intelligenza artificiale.'; 'Nell’immagine elaborata quella parte è stata invece ricostruita artificialmente dall’intelligenza artificiale'; 'risale addirittura a giovedì 24 settembre alle 12,33'; 'venerdì 25 settembre alle 8,27'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s4"},{"locator":"'pubblicando il link del blog Iacchitè, che aveva pubblicato l'immagine generata con l'IA'","relation":"context","source_id":"s2"}],"assertion":"The blog Iacchite' says it published the image with an article on 24 September 2026, that the image was produced with artificial intelligence and was not a real photograph, that the AI reconstructed the neck and neckline area where the original photograph shows a light T-shirt, and that Vannacci reposted it on 25 September without citing the source.","causal_attribution":"The blog's own account relayed by Adnkronos (reviewer translation: 'What we published was not a real photograph. It was an image produced with artificial intelligence'). The blog does not name the tool or say who prompted it; it characterises the image as satirical and not pornographic."},{"id":"c3","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'Usare l'intelligenza artificiale per spogliare una donna, con la volontà evidente di denigrare una donna, è un problema gigantesco per tutti'; 'sta valutando l'ipotesi di \"presentare una denuncia'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s3"},{"locator":"'annunciando l’intenzione di presentare querela. «Si tratta di un reato e le donne vanno tutelate.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"},{"locator":"'per ora diciamo che si muoveranno i miei avvocati'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s6"},{"locator":"'E si rivolgerà a un avvocato per una querela.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s7"}],"assertion":"Siracusano described the image as using AI to undress a woman in order to denigrate her, called it a crime, and said she intended to file, or was weighing, a criminal complaint (querela); she told la Repubblica that her lawyers would act.","causal_attribution":"Her own statements to several outlets (reviewer translation of Adnkronos: 'Using artificial intelligence to undress a woman, with the evident will to denigrate a woman, is a gigantic problem for everyone'). An announced complaint is recorded; no filing is reported."},{"id":"c4","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'A chi mi accusa, senza alcuna concretezza, di aver modificato una foto con la IA, rispondo di cercare meglio e di rivolgere le accuse, eventualmente, a chi di dovere'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s8"},{"locator":"'rimandando al blog che ha pubblicato il post corredato con la foto manipolata della deputata di Forza Italia'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s3"}],"assertion":"Vannacci replied on Facebook that those accusing him without any concreteness of having altered a photo with AI should look better and direct their accusations to whom they are due, linking to the blog that had published the image.","causal_attribution":"Vannacci's public reply as quoted by Corriere della Calabria and Adnkronos; he denies making the alteration and does not dispute that he posted the image."}],"effects":[{"label":"an AI-altered image removing the top under her jacket and generating a deeper neckline was published on a blog and reposted by a party leader on Facebook during an election campaign; she described it as a sexist attack to denigrate her and announced legal action","claim_id":"c1","direction":"negative"}],"sources":[{"id":"s1","url":"https://www.agi.it/politica/news/2026-09-26/vannacci-siracusano-39260391/","kind":"wire_report","access":"read","language":"it","translation_note":"Read live on 2026-09-27 (AGI, 26 September 2026; Italian). Describes the Facebook post and the original photo. Quotations are Italian originals; English renderings in this record are reviewer translations, no human translator.","independence_group":"agi"},{"id":"s2","url":"https://www.rainews.it/articoli/2026/09/vannacci-rilancia-foto-scollata-della-sottosegretaria-ritoccata-con-lia-fi-insorge-3ec0ff68-f70e-4e3a-9928-23445143b36d.html","kind":"news_report","access":"read","language":"it","translation_note":"Read live on 2026-09-27 (RaiNews, 26 September 2026; Italian). Describes the alteration, Siracusano's statement announcing a querela, and Vannacci's reply. Reviewer translation. Siracusano's quoted words ('una scelta perversa e squallida') match those ANSA attributes to her Corriere.it interview, so for c3 this likely relays the same interview as s7.","independence_group":"rainews"},{"id":"s3","url":"https://www.adnkronos.com/politica/matilde-siracusano-post-foto-ritoccata-ai-fake-oggi-bufera_3BWSuxpUZl4k99BHdYNcPW","kind":"wire_report","access":"read","language":"it","translation_note":"Read live on 2026-09-27 (Adnkronos, 26 September 2026; Italian). Siracusano's direct comments to Adnkronos, Vannacci's Facebook reply and political reactions. Reviewer translation.","independence_group":"adnkronos"},{"id":"s4","url":"https://www.adnkronos.com/politica/siracusano-vannacci-foto-ia-blog-iacchite-oggi_5MZGVSAnIoHq3R7JG6ZG8c","kind":"wire_report","access":"read","language":"it","translation_note":"Read live on 2026-09-27 (Adnkronos, 26 September 2026; Italian). Relays the blog Iacchite's own statement on how and when it published the AI image; the blog post itself was not read. Reviewer translation.","independence_group":"iacchite-blog-statement"},{"id":"s5","url":"https://www.ansa.it/sito/notizie/politica/2026/09/26/bufera-per-la-foto-modificata-di-siracusano-rilanciata-da-vannacci_f4bf9e8a-edc2-49a5-b090-6cd8df138b96.html","kind":"wire_report","access":"read","language":"it","translation_note":"Read live on 2026-09-27 (ANSA; Italian). Canonical URL of the article read (the Google News link resolved to an older slug with the same ID); headed 'Domani si vota alle suppletive a Reggio, tempesta su Vannacci per la foto fake di Matilde Siracusano'. Reviewer translation.","independence_group":"ansa"},{"id":"s6","url":"https://www.repubblica.it/politica/2026/09/26/news/matilde_siracusano_fi_vannacci_foto_nuda_ia_intervista-425609252/","kind":"news_report","access":"read","language":"it","translation_note":"Read on 2026-09-27 (la Repubblica interview, 26 September 2026; Italian). Only the opening of the interview was available (JSON-LD article body); the remainder is paywalled and was not read. Reviewer translation.","independence_group":"repubblica"},{"id":"s7","url":"https://www.tempostretto.it/news/post-di-vannacci-con-foto-ritoccata-dallia-matilde-siracusano-querela-lex-generale.html","kind":"news_report","access":"read","language":"it","translation_note":"Read live on 2026-09-27 (Tempo Stretto, Messina, 26 September 2026; Italian). Relays Siracusano's statement to Corriere della Sera (not read). Reviewer translation.","independence_group":"corriere-della-sera-interview"},{"id":"s8","url":"https://www.corrieredellacalabria.it/2026/09/26/foto-con-lia-vannacci-replica-cercate-meglio/","kind":"news_report","access":"read","language":"it","translation_note":"Read live on 2026-09-27 (Corriere della Calabria, 26 September 2026; Italian). Quotes Vannacci's Facebook reply. Reviewer translation. Its account of Vannacci's reply is word-for-word identical to the corresponding RaiNews paragraph (s2), so the two share one account for c4.","independence_group":"vannacci-facebook-reply"}],"version":1,"ai_roles":["others_use"],"contexts":["public_life","elections","privacy"],"unknowns":["Which AI tool produced the image and who operated it (the blog says the AI generated the altered area but does not name the tool or the person).","Whether the criminal complaint has been filed and under which offence; whether a prosecutor has opened an investigation.","Whether the post was removed from the blog or from Vannacci's Facebook page, and how widely it was shared.","The dates of the blog's publication (24 September) and Vannacci's repost (25 September) rest only on the blog's own statement relayed by Adnkronos; no other inspected source dates the Facebook post."],"geography":{"basis":"The image was published by a Calabrian blog and on the Facebook page of an Italian party leader in the campaign for the Reggio Calabria by-election (AGI, RaiNews, ANSA, Adnkronos); Siracusano is an Italian deputy and undersecretary. No filed complaint or court is reported, so court_countries is empty.","court_countries":[],"event_countries":["IT"],"affected_person_countries":["IT"]},"publication":{"basis":"Published under the 2026-09-15 charter as a core depicted_or_impersonated case: several national outlets describe an AI-altered image of a named public figure that removed clothing and generated a deeper neckline, circulated in an election campaign; the blog that first published it says it was produced with AI. She announced legal action. The tool and operator are unknown.","reviewed_on":"2026-09-27"},"ai_involvement":{"basis":"The blog Iacchite', which says it first published the image, states it was 'elaborata con l'intelligenza artificiale' and that the AI reconstructed the neck and neckline area (via Adnkronos). RaiNews and Corriere della Calabria, in an identical passage, describe it as an image generated with AI; Adnkronos as a photo retouched by AI; AGI as a collage of other photos. Siracusano says it was altered with software and AI (RaiNews, Adnkronos). These outlet descriptions do not independently establish how the image was made. No tool is named and no forensic analysis is reported.","status":"reported"},"person_relations":["depicted_or_impersonated"]},"name":"Italian official condemns alleged AI sexualisation of her photograph in a political post","summary":"On the eve of the 27-28 September 2026 Chamber by-election in the Reggio Calabria constituency, Roberto Vannacci, leader of Futuro Nazionale, posted on Facebook a campaign image showing Matilde Siracusano, Undersecretary for Relations with Parliament and a Forza Italia deputy, seated at a table beside the centre-right candidate Fabio Roscioli and Senator Claudio Lotito. According to AGI and RaiNews, the white top Siracusano wears under her floral jacket in the original photograph (taken from her Instagram profile, per RaiNews) had disappeared and a much deeper neckline appeared in its place. The Calabrian blog Iacchite', to which Vannacci pointed, said it had published the image on 24 September, that it was not a real photograph but an image produced with artificial intelligence, and that the AI had reconstructed the neck and neckline area; Vannacci reposted it on 25 September without citing the source, according to the blog. Siracusano told Adnkronos that using AI to undress a woman in order to denigrate her was 'squalid'; RaiNews reports her calling it a crime and announcing her intention to file a criminal complaint (querela), while Adnkronos and ANSA say she was weighing one; she told la Repubblica that her lawyers would act. Vannacci replied that his accusers should 'look better' for whom to blame. Ministers and politicians across parties, including Forza Italia leader Antonio Tajani, condemned the post. No complaint filing, investigation or removal of the post is reported in the inspected sources.","incidentDate":"2026-09-24","incidentEndDate":"2026-09-25","incidentKind":"bounded_series","incidentDatePrecision":"range","exposurePattern":"single_interaction","reportedDate":"2026-09-26","aiSystem":"An unidentified generative-AI image tool that, according to the blog Iacchite', produced the composite image and regenerated the neck and neckline area of Siracusano's photograph; the tool is not named","aiProduct":"Unidentified image tool","severity":"low","verificationStatus":"credible","harmCategories":[],"harmOutcomes":["reputational_harm"],"harmOutcomeSummary":"Siracusano says an AI-altered image that 'undressed' her was used for electoral propaganda to denigrate her; she called it sexist and squalid and announced legal action (her statements to Adnkronos, RaiNews, la Repubblica). The image circulated on a blog and on Vannacci's Facebook page and became a national controversy (AGI, ANSA).","frameworkFacets":[],"causationStatus":"alleged","participantUsersAffectedMin":0,"otherPeopleHarmedMin":1,"affectedCountStatus":"exact","affectedCountEvidence":"One person, Matilde Siracusano, depicted in the altered image (AGI, RaiNews, Adnkronos). Exact 1.","victimAgeRange":"adult","jurisdiction":"IT","platformType":"other","outcomeType":"media_coverage","outcomeStatus":"ongoing","primarySourceUrl":"https://www.agi.it/politica/news/2026-09-26/vannacci-siracusano-39260391/","primarySourceLabel":"AGI, 26 September 2026: Vannacci 'amplia' la scollatura di Matilde Siracusano sui social ed è subito bufera","firstPublishedAt":"2026-09-27T03:39:45.926413+00:00","updatedAt":"2026-10-05T11:08:59.788816+00:00","scopeVersion":"facts-v3","tags":["deepfake","image-manipulation","politics","election","italy","calabria","sexualised-imagery","depicted-or-impersonated"]},{"id":"2026-jeju-middle-school-student-filmed-teachers-deepfake-composites-referred","caseFacts":{"claims":[{"id":"c1","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'제주동부경찰서는 도내 모 중학교 재학생 A군을 성폭력범죄의 처벌 등에 관한 특례법 위반(카메라 등 이용 촬영) 혐의로 지난 17일 불구속 송치했다고 23일 밝혔다.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"},{"locator":"'제주동부경찰서는 성폭력범죄의 처벌 등에 관한 특례법상 카메라 등을 이용한 촬영 혐의로 A 군을 불구속 송치했다고 23일 밝혔다.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"}],"assertion":"Jeju Dongbu Police Station announced on 23 September 2026 that a student at a Jeju middle school had been referred to prosecutors without detention on 17 September for violating the Sexual Violence Punishment Act (filming using a camera or similar device).","causal_attribution":"Police announcement carried by both outlets (one origin)."},{"id":"c2","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'경찰은 A군의 휴대전화를 보호자 측으로부터 임의제출받아 디지털 포렌식을 진행했다. 포렌식 과정에서 일부 교사와 관련된 촬영물과 일부 성적 합성물이 확인됐으며, A군은 범행을 인정하고 자백한 것으로 파악됐다.'; '포렌식 결과 일부 선정적인 합성물이 확인됐고, 수치심을 유발할 정도의 자료는 범죄 혐의에 포함해 수사했다'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"The student's phone was voluntarily submitted by his guardians and forensically examined; the examination found footage relating to some teachers and some sexual composites, the student admitted the conduct, and police say suggestive composites causing shame were included in the charged conduct.","causal_attribution":"Police account to Seoul Shinmun."},{"id":"c3","status":"disputed","evidence":[{"locator":"'처음 신고된 피해 교사 외에도 피해 교사가 더 있는 것은 맞지만 몇 명인지는 밝히기 어렵다'; '일부에서 학생 피해자가 있다는 이야기가 있었지만 확인 결과 해당 학교 재학생 피해자는 없었다'; '피해교사들이 현재도 해당 학교에서 학생들을 가르치고 있어 피해 사실이 알려질 경우 2차 피해로 이어질 수 있다는 이유에서다.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"},{"locator":"'피해자가 다수 있는 것을 확인했다'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"},{"locator":"'가해학생의 휴대전화에서 제 자신을 촬영한 자료뿐 아니라 다른 교사들과 재학생들이 촬영대상으로 보이는 자료도 직접 확인했다.'; '수사기관이 학교에 신원확인을 요청한 것은 가해학생에 관한 것이었으며, 촬영 대상자로 보이는 재학생들의 신원을 확인하기 위한 별도의 자료 요청은 없었던 것으로 파악됐다고 A씨는 전했다.'","relation":"contradicts","source_id":"s3"},{"locator":"'제가 가해 학생의 휴대전화에서 확인한 피해 학생이 10∼20명 정도였다'; '그런 상황에서 학교에선 재학생 피해자가 없는 것으로 가정 통신문이 나갔고, 학부모들 사이에서 혼란한 상황이 발생했다'","relation":"contradicts","source_id":"s6"},{"locator":"'휴대전화 포렌식 등을 통해 철저히 수사했고, 사회적 통념을 벗어난 행위는 모두 특정해 입증했다'; '수사 과정에서 학생 1명도 피해를 본 것으로 확인됐는데, 이 학생은 다른 학교에 재학 중인 학생'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s4"}],"assertion":"Police say there are more victim teachers than the one first reported but withheld the number because the teachers still teach at the school and disclosure could cause secondary harm, and that no student at the school was a victim; on 29 September police added that one student victim was confirmed, a student at a different school, while the victim teachers say current students and a graduate appear in the footage.","causal_attribution":"Disputed. Police position (Seoul Shinmun 23 September; News1 and JoongAng 29 September): thorough forensics, no student at the school, one confirmed student victim at a different school. Victim teachers' position (press interview 29 September, one origin across outlets): 10-20 current students and a graduate appear in the footage, no identification procedure was run, and the school's letter to parents said there were no student victims."},{"id":"c4","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'특히 피해교사들이 직접 여러 학생과 관련된 촬영물을 확인했는데도 별도의 강제 압수수색 없이 사건이 마무리되는 것 아니냐는 우려를 제기했다.'; '임의제출받은 휴대전화에 대한 포렌식으로 필요한 증거를 확보했다'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"The Jeju teachers' union questioned whether the full scope of harm was established, saying the victim teachers had themselves seen footage involving several students yet no compulsory seizure was made; police replied that forensics of the voluntarily submitted phone secured the necessary evidence.","causal_attribution":"Union and police positions as reported."},{"id":"c5","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'피해교사들은 사건이 드러난 지 두 달이 지나도록 병원 치료와 심리상담을 받으면서도 매일 학교에 출근해 수업하고 있다.'; '지난 14일에는 변호사 조력 없이 경찰 피해자 조사를 받았고, 17일에는 교육청과 학교안전공제회의 조력 없이 지역교권보호위원회에 출석했다. 형사고소장도 피해교사들이 직접 작성해 제출했다고 노조는 주장했다.'; '대체교사를 구하기 어려워 사용할 수 있는 특별휴가 16일 가운데 3~4일 정도만 사용하고 있다는 게 노조 측 설명이다.'; '노조는 학교안전공제회가 형사고소 변호사비를 피해교사 개인별이 아닌'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"},{"locator":"'제주교사노동조합은 14일 입장문을 내고 해당 사건 피해교사들이 이날 도교육청 변호사의 조력을 받지 못한 채 경찰 피해자 조사에 출석했다고 밝혔다.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s10"}],"assertion":"According to the union, two months after the case came to light the victim teachers are receiving hospital treatment and counselling while going to school every day; on 14 September they gave police statements without a lawyer and on 17 September attended the regional teachers' rights protection committee without institutional support; they wrote the criminal complaint themselves; they have used only three or four of 16 days of special leave because substitute teachers cannot be found; and the school safety mutual-aid association proposes legal fees of 3.3 million won for all victim teachers combined, payable after the case ends.","causal_attribution":"The union's account as reported; not independently confirmed."},{"id":"c6","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'교육청에도 치료비나 휴식, 병가 등 피해교사에 대한 지원이 필요하다는 취지로 이야기했다'; '피해교사들은 지난 1일과 3일 두 차례 교육감 면담을 요청했지만 받아들여지지 않았고'; '노조는 오는 10월 2일까지 전국 교사·시민을 대상으로 가해자 엄벌 탄원과 피해교사 지원을 요구하는 서명운동을 벌인다.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"},{"locator":"'노조에 따르면 피해교사들은 지난 1일과 3일 두 차례 교육감 면담을 요청했고 이후 재고를 요청했지만 답변을 받지 못했다.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s10"}],"assertion":"Police said they had told the education office that the teachers need support such as treatment costs, rest and sick leave; the victim teachers requested meetings with the superintendent on 1 and 3 September without success and a third written request was sent to the superintendent's office on 21 September; the union is collecting signatures until 2 October 2026 for severe punishment and victim support.","causal_attribution":"Police and union statements as reported; the meeting requests are described in a passage introduced by reference to the union side."},{"id":"c7","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'A 군은 7월 중순쯤 모 중학교 현장체험학습 도중 교사의 신체를 휴대전화로 촬영한 혐의로 입건됐다.'; '경찰은 휴대전화 조사 과정에서 범행이 수개월간 이어졌으며 피해자가 다수 있는 것을 확인했다.'; '다만 경찰은 합성물을 유포한 정황은 발견하지 못했다고 전했다.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"}],"assertion":"News1 reports that the student was booked for filming a teacher's body with his phone during a school field trip around mid-July 2026, that the phone examination showed the offending had continued for several months with multiple victims, and that police found no indication the composites were distributed.","causal_attribution":"Police account as reported by News1."},{"id":"c8","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'당시 확인한 내용을 바탕으로 피해대상자와 피해유형을 별도의 목록으로 작성해 뒀다'; '경찰 피해자 조사에서 제가 확인하게 된 제 피해자료의 양이 사건 초기 휴대전화에서 직접 확인했던 것보다 상당히 적었다'; '경찰이 의도적으로 피해를 축소했다는 것은 아니다'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s3"},{"locator":"'경찰 수사 초기 재학생들이 촬영 대상으로 보이는 자료를 직접 확인해 피해 대상자와 피해 유형을 별도의 목록으로 작성해 뒀다'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s4"},{"locator":"'경찰 수사 초기 가해 학생의 휴대전화에서 직접 확인한 피해 학생만 10~20명에 달했다'; '졸업생 중에는 교사들보다 훨씬 심각한 수준의 딥페이크 피해를 입은 사례도 존재했다'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s5"},{"locator":"'저희보다 진짜 심한 내용으로 딥페이크를 많이 당한 한 졸업생을 확인하고, 학부모에게 얘기하고 그 학생이 다니는 학교에 학교폭력 신고도 접수했는데 경찰에서는 (피해자가)특정 안 됐다고 했다'; '경찰은 처음에 불법 촬영만 있다고 하다가 며칠 뒤에야 딥페이크를 찾았다 했다'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s6"},{"locator":"'2년 간 함께해 온 아이들이었기 때문에 교사로서 피해 상황을 특정할 수 있었고, 피해 학생들의 목록까지 만들어뒀다'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s7"}],"assertion":"At a press interview on 29 September 2026 one of the victim teachers said that early in the investigation she had seen on the student's phone material in which other teachers and current students appeared to be the subjects and had written a list of the people and types of harm; that the amount of her own material shown to her at the police victim examination was considerably less than what she had seen, with more confirmed only after she went through her list; that she recognised 10 to 20 students (Yonhap-chain quotes) and a graduate who had suffered worse deepfakes and whose school received a school-violence report; and that she was not alleging deliberate minimisation.","causal_attribution":"The teacher's own account to the press (one origin, carried by several outlets); the numbers are her recollection of what she saw on the phone and are disputed by police (c3, c9)."},{"id":"c9","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'휴대전화 포렌식 등을 통해 철저히 수사했고, 사회적 통념을 벗어난 행위는 모두 특정해 입증했다'; '수사 과정에서 학생 1명도 피해를 본 것으로 확인됐는데, 이 학생은 다른 학교에 재학 중인 학생'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s4"},{"locator":"'경찰 측은 수사 과정에서 다른 학교에 재학 중인 학생 1명의 피해 사실을 확인해 입건 수사했다고 설명했다.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s5"}],"assertion":"Police responded on 29 September 2026 that the investigation had been thorough, using phone forensics, that every act beyond social norms had been identified and proven, and that one student had been confirmed as a victim, a student attending a different school, whose case was booked and investigated.","causal_attribution":"Police official's statement to News1 (by telephone) and as relayed by JoongAng; one origin."},{"id":"c10","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'사건은 지난 22일 경찰에서 검찰로 송치됐다는 통보가 이뤄졌고, 이틀 뒤인 24일 소년보호사건으로 법원에 송치됐다는 결정이 피해 교사들에게 전달됐다.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s3"},{"locator":"'검찰로 사건이 송치됐다는 통보를 받은 뒤 불과 이틀 만인 지난 24일 소년부 송치 결정이 이뤄졌다는 통보를 받아 당황스러운 상황'; '경찰에 내려던 자료를 하나도 내지 못한 상태인데, 조만간 피해자 의견서와 객관적 자료를 별도로 정리해 제출할 예정'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s4"},{"locator":"'해당 중학생은 지난 24일 소년보호사건으로 법원 소년부에 송치됐다.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s6"},{"locator":"'경찰이 검찰로 사건을 넘긴지 이틀 만인 지난 24일 소년보호사건으로 법원 송치가 결정된 것에 대해'; '현재 경찰에 제출하기로 한 자료를 하나도 제출하지 못한 상태다.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s8"},{"locator":"'피해자료를 제출할 시간도 없이 사건이 검찰을 거쳐 소년부로 넘어갔다고 주장했다.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s7"}],"assertion":"The victim teachers were notified on 22 September 2026 that the case had been sent from the police to the prosecution and on 24 September that it had been referred to the court's juvenile division as a juvenile protection case; the teacher said none of the material she had intended to submit to the police had been filed and that a victim opinion and objective material would be submitted separately.","causal_attribution":"The referral dates come from the notifications the teachers describe; no court or prosecution record or official statement was read, so the claim stays reported. The court is not named."},{"id":"c11","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'A씨 등 교사 5명 등의 신체를 불법 촬영하고 딥페이크 이미지를 제작한 혐의로 검거된 해당 중학생은 지난 24일 소년보호사건으로 법원 소년부에 송치됐다.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s6"},{"locator":"'B군은 교사 5명 등을 대상으로 한 불법 촬영 혐의로 법원 소년부에 송치된 상태다.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s5"}],"assertion":"Yonhap-chain reports of 29 September 2026 describe the student as referred to the court's juvenile division on charges of illegally filming five teachers and others and making deepfake images.","causal_attribution":"One chain (Yonhap, via Segye and JoongAng); the origin of the figure (police, referral papers or the union) is not stated. Police had withheld the number on 23 September."},{"id":"c12","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'최초 고소장에는 불법촬영과 AI 허위영상물뿐 아니라 ▲2025년 발생한 실제 신체접촉의 강제추행 해당 여부 ▲2026년 반복적인 접근·대기·지켜보기 등의 행위에 대한 스토킹범죄 해당 여부도 별도로 수사해 달라는 내용이 담겼다고 피해 교사 측은 밝혔다.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s3"},{"locator":"'이 사건은 지난 7월 학교 현장체험학습에서야 드러났지만 가해 학생에 의한 신체 접촉, 스토킹 등의 피해는 2025년부터 계속됐다고 한다.'; '매일 아침 출근하는 게 굉장히 무서웠습니다. 정확히 제가 올라가는 계단에서 (저를) 찍으려고 기다렸습니다.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s8"},{"locator":"'사건은 지난 7월 교외 체험학습 과정에서 불거졌다. 피해교사들에 따르면 당시 학생들과 영화관에 갔고, 한 학생이 교사 주변을 반복적으로 배회하는 모습이 목격됐다.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s7"}],"assertion":"The teacher said the original criminal complaint had also asked police to investigate physical contact in 2025 as possible forcible molestation and repeated approaching, waiting and watching in 2026 as possible stalking; Halla Ilbo reports that physical contact and stalking by the student are said to have continued since 2025, and quotes her saying she was frightened every morning because the student waited on the stairs she used in order to film her.","causal_attribution":"The teachers' account of their complaint and experience; whether the 2025 conduct is part of the charged case is not stated."},{"id":"c13","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'제주교사노동조합에 따르면 형사고소 변호사비가 피해교사 전체를 합쳐 330만원으로 산정됐고, 이마저 사건 종결 이후 지급되는 것으로 알려졌다.'; '노조는 피해교사 1인당 기준으로 변호사비를 선지급해야하고, 전담 지원팀을 구성해 특별휴가를 실질적으로 보장해야 한다고 주장했다.'; '도교육청 소속 변호사는 학교 법률자문과 현장 지원 등의 업무를 수행하고 있지만 공공기관 소속이기 때문에 교원 개인의 변호인으로 선임돼 경찰 조사에 참여할 수는 없다'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s9"},{"locator":"'이번 사건은 학생과 교사라는 특수성이 있고, 소년법과 관련된 절차도 있기 때문에 이 사건의 특성에 맞는 변호사를 직접 선임하고 싶었지만, 관련된 비용은 지원되지 않았다'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s7"},{"locator":"'실제 지역교권보호위원회와 경찰 피해자 조사에는 교육청이 지원한 변호사의 동행 없이 참석했다.'; '교원을 상대로 민·형사 소송이 제기된 경우 교원보호공제회를 통해 심급별 최대 660만원의 소송비용을 지원한다.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s3"},{"locator":"'피소를 당할 때는 각자 자기 방어를 해야 되기 때문에 개인별로 660만원 내에서 지원하지만, 고소를 하는 경우에는 건당 (330만원을) 지원하고 있다'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s8"}],"assertion":"Legal-aid dispute: the union says criminal-complaint lawyer fees were set at 3.3 million won for all victim teachers together, payable after the case ends, and demands per-teacher fees paid in advance and a dedicated support team; the teacher says she wanted to appoint a lawyer suited to a juvenile-law case but no costs were supported and no office lawyer accompanied the teachers to the police examination or the protection committee; the education office says a teacher who is sued receives up to 6.6 million won per instance while a teacher who files a complaint receives 3.3 million won per case, and that its lawyers, as public-body staff, cannot act as an individual teacher's counsel at a police examination.","causal_attribution":"Union, teacher and education-office positions as reported on 29 September; the office's rules are its own description of the mutual-aid terms."},{"id":"c14","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'보다 포괄적인 지원이 가능하도록 국가 성평등가족부가 운영하는 디지털성범죄피해자지원센터를 연계했다고 부연했다.'; '피해자들이 심각한 어려움을 겪고 있는 상황에 비해 초기 지원이 체감되지 못한 부분이 있었던 것 같다'; '그 부분에 대해서는 죄송스럽고 안타깝게 생각하고 있다'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s9"},{"locator":"'(064-1395)를 통한 교육활동 침해 사안 통합 지원 체계를 발표하면서'; '좀 더 잘 지원하지 못한 것에 대해 죄송스럽고 안타깝게 생각한다'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s8"},{"locator":"'제주도교육청은 이날 오전 별개로 가진 브리핑에서 피해교원에 대한 초기 지원이 충분히 체감되지 못한 부분이 있었다며 유감을 표했다.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s7"},{"locator":"'내년 1월 1일 출범하는 교육활동보호담당관의 역할과 운영 방향을 구체화할 예정이다.'; '도교육청은 다음 달 15일 ‘교육활동보호의 새로운 출발, 함께 길을 찾다’를 주제로 토론회를 열어'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s3"}],"assertion":"At a briefing on 29 September 2026 the Jeju education office said it had linked the victim teachers to the national Digital Sexual Crime Victim Support Center, announced an integrated support system for teacher-activity infringements run through a hotline and its protection centre, with a forum on 15 October and a new protection officer post from 1 January 2027, and its section head said the office was sorry and regretful that early support had not been felt by the victims.","causal_attribution":"Education office briefing as reported by three outlets (one origin)."},{"id":"c15","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'제주교사노동조합은 14일 입장문을 내고 해당 사건 피해교사들이 이날 도교육청 변호사의 조력을 받지 못한 채 경찰 피해자 조사에 출석했다고 밝혔다.'; '노조는 지난 3일 공제회에 변호사 보수 재산정 이의서를 제출했다.'; '최근 발생한 딥페이크 사건을 거론하며 도교육청의 법률지원 체계를 따져 물었다.'; '타 시도가 어떻게 하고 있는지 파악해 피해 교원들이 혼자 대응하지 않도록 하는 방안을 모색해 보겠다'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s10"}],"assertion":"On 14 September 2026 the Jeju Teachers' Union said the victim teachers attended the police victim examination that day without the help of an education-office lawyer, that it had filed an objection on 3 September to the mutual-aid body's fee calculation, and that two requests to meet the superintendent had gone unanswered; the same day a member of the provincial council's education committee questioned the office's legal-support system and the education bureau chief said the office would look at ways to stop victim teachers having to respond alone.","causal_attribution":"Union statement and council proceedings as reported by Newsjeju (one origin)."},{"id":"c16","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'전교조 제주지부는 교육청에 ▲불법촬영물·딥페이크 영상의 신속한 삭제·차단 ▲전문기관과 연계한 피해 영상 모니터링 ▲법률·심리·의료 지원 ▲수사·치료에 필요한 휴가와 시간 보장 ▲대체수업 및 대체인력 지원 ▲가해학생과의 실질적인 분리 ▲피해교사의 개인정보 및 사건정보 보호 등을 요구했다.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s11"}],"assertion":"On 28 September 2026 the KTU Jeju branch demanded that the education office set up a victim-support system: rapid deletion and blocking of the filmed and deepfake material, monitoring through specialist bodies, legal, psychological and medical support, leave and time for investigation and treatment, substitute teaching and staff, real separation from the student, protection of the teachers' personal and case information, and a response manual.","causal_attribution":"Union statement as reported (one origin)."},{"id":"c17","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'교육당국 측은 00중 딥페이크 사건 관련 추가 형사고소에 대한 변호사 비용 지원 신청을 최종 받아들이지 않았다'; '이미 경찰수사가 진행 중인 상황에서 피해 교사들의 추가 고소가 교육활동 침해행위의 지속을 중단시키거나 재발을 방지하는 데 실효적 조치로 보기 어렵다'; '지원 요건 미충족을 기각사유로 들었다'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s12"}],"assertion":"Seogwipo Broadcasting reported on 6 October 2026, citing people in education and a tipster, that in a written opinion on litigation-cost support the education authority had finally rejected the victim teachers' application for lawyer fees for an additional criminal complaint in the case, saying that with a police investigation already under way a further complaint by the teachers could hardly be seen as an effective measure to stop or prevent the infringement of their educational activity, so the support requirements were not met.","causal_attribution":"One outlet's account of the written opinion, sourced to people in education and a tipster; the opinion itself was not read. Linking this report to this case is the reviewer's inference; the article body names neither the school nor the region."},{"id":"c18","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'과거 서귀포 모 초등학교에서 발생한 두 차례의'; '유사 성범죄 당시에는 피해자에 대한 소송비용이 100% 지원됐던 사례와 비교할 때 이번 기각 결정은 형평성에 크게 어긋난다는 지적이다'; '딥페이크 범죄에 대해서는 지원을 기각하는 것은 형평성에 맞지 않는다'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s12"}],"assertion":"The same report says people in education object that victims' litigation costs were fully supported in earlier sexual-harassment and sexual-offence cases, including two incidents at an elementary school in Seogwipo, and quotes a tipster calling the rejection inequitable.","causal_attribution":"Criticism as reported by one outlet; the earlier cases' support was not checked."}],"effects":[{"label":"teachers secretly filmed by a student, with some footage turned into sexual deepfake composites","claim_id":"c2","direction":"negative"},{"label":"victim teachers in hospital treatment and counselling for two months while teaching daily; questioned without a lawyer, attended the protection committee without support and wrote the complaint themselves","claim_id":"c5","direction":"negative"},{"label":"the victim teachers say students and a graduate they recognised in the footage were never identified as victims and a letter to parents said there were none; police say one student at another school was confirmed","claim_id":"c8","direction":"negative"},{"label":"a teacher reports fear of going to school because the student waited on the stairs to film her, and physical contact and stalking said to date from 2025 (teacher's account)","claim_id":"c12","direction":"negative"}],"sources":[{"id":"s1","url":"https://www.seoul.co.kr/news/society/accident/2026/09/23/20260923500094","kind":"news_report","access":"read","language":"ko","translation_note":"Read live in Korean on 2026-09-23 (Seoul Shinmun, 강동삼, published 11:18 KST 23 September 2026): police announcement, the paper's own call to a police official, the Jeju teachers' union's statements. Model reading; no human bilingual review.","independence_group":"seoul-shinmun"},{"id":"s2","url":"https://www.news1.kr/local/jeju/6300227","kind":"news_report","access":"read","language":"ko","translation_note":"Read in Korean on 2026-09-23 through the r.jina.ai reader proxy (live page 403); News1 Jeju, 고동명, 23 September 2026: the police announcement of the referral, the mid-July field-trip filming for which he was booked, several months of offending with multiple victims, and no indication of distribution of the composites. Model reading; no human bilingual review.","independence_group":"news1"},{"id":"s3","url":"https://www.seoul.co.kr/news/society/accident/2026/09/29/20260929500240","kind":"news_report","access":"read","language":"ko","translation_note":"Read live in Korean on 2026-09-30 (Seoul Shinmun [속보], 29 September 2026): the victim teacher's press interview at the Jeju Teachers' Union office, the 22/24 September referral notices, the contents of the original complaint, and the education office's support measures. The teacher's statements are one origin whichever outlet carries them. Model reading; no human bilingual review.","independence_group":"teacher-press-interview-2026-09-29"},{"id":"s4","url":"https://www.news1.kr/local/jeju/6305066","kind":"news_report","access":"read","language":"ko","translation_note":"News1 Jeju (오미란), 29 September 2026. Live page returned HTTP 403 on 2026-09-30; read in Korean through News1's Daum mirror (v.daum.net/v/20260929174948788). Carries the press interview and News1's own call to a police official (thorough forensics; one student victim at a different school). Model reading; no human bilingual review.","independence_group":"teacher-press-interview-2026-09-29"},{"id":"s5","url":"https://www.joongang.co.kr/article/25465730","kind":"news_report","access":"read","language":"ko","translation_note":"Read live in Korean on 2026-09-30 (JoongAng Ilbo, 29 September 2026; Yonhap photo, text closely matching Segye: Yonhap chain). Gives the 10-20 students figure, the graduate, the police reply (one student at another school booked and investigated) and '교사 5명 등'. Model reading; no human bilingual review.","independence_group":"teacher-press-interview-2026-09-29"},{"id":"s6","url":"https://m.segye.com/ampView/20260929518740","kind":"news_report","access":"read","language":"ko","translation_note":"Read live in Korean on 2026-09-30 (Segye Ilbo AMP page, 29 September 2026; Yonhap photo and Yonhap-chain text). Direct quotes from the teacher on the 10-20 students, the parents' letter, the graduate and the school-violence report; states five teachers and the 24 September juvenile-division referral. Model reading; no human bilingual review.","independence_group":"teacher-press-interview-2026-09-29"},{"id":"s7","url":"https://www.jejusori.net/news/articleView.html?idxno=506962","kind":"news_report","access":"read","language":"ko","translation_note":"Read live in Korean on 2026-09-30 (Jejusori, 29 September 2026): own report of the press interview, the July cinema field trip, the list of students, the legal-aid complaints, and the education office's expression of regret at its separate briefing. Model reading; no human bilingual review.","independence_group":"teacher-press-interview-2026-09-29"},{"id":"s8","url":"http://www.ihalla.com/article.php?aid=1790673054791032014","kind":"news_report","access":"read","language":"ko","translation_note":"Read live in Korean on 2026-09-30 (Halla Ilbo, 29 September 2026, updated 30 September): own report of the interview (fear on the stairs; conduct since 2025; nothing yet submitted; 24 September referral) and of the education office's briefing (hotline; 660/330만원 rules; apology). Model reading; no human bilingual review.","independence_group":"teacher-press-interview-2026-09-29"},{"id":"s9","url":"https://www.jejusori.net/news/articleView.html?idxno=506933","kind":"news_report","access":"read","language":"ko","translation_note":"Read live in Korean on 2026-09-30 (Jejusori, 29 September 2026): the education office's briefing on legal-aid rules and the union's demands (per-teacher fees in advance, dedicated team), including the section head's apology. Model reading; no human bilingual review.","independence_group":"jeju-education-office-briefing-2026-09-29"},{"id":"s10","url":"https://www.newsjeju.net/news/articleView.html?idxno=425867","kind":"news_report","access":"read","language":"ko","translation_note":"Read live in Korean on 2026-09-30 (Newsjeju, 14 September 2026): the Jeju Teachers' Union statement that the teachers attended the police victim examination without an office lawyer, the 3 September fee objection, the unanswered superintendent meeting requests, and the provincial council education committee's questioning of the office. Model reading; no human bilingual review.","independence_group":"jeju-teachers-union-statement-2026-09-14"},{"id":"s11","url":"https://www.seoul.co.kr/news/society/accident/2026/09/28/20260928500112","kind":"news_report","access":"read","language":"ko","translation_note":"Read live in Korean on 2026-09-30 (Seoul Shinmun, 28 September 2026): the KTU Jeju branch statement demanding a victim-support system and a response manual. Model reading; no human bilingual review.","independence_group":"ktu-jeju-statement-2026-09-28"},{"id":"s12","url":"http://www.seogwipo.tv/news/articleView.html?idxno=14912","kind":"news_report","access":"read","language":"ko","translation_note":"Read live in Korean on 2026-10-06 (HTTP 200; Seogwipo Broadcasting, 6 October 2026): own report, citing people in education and a tipster, of the education authority's written opinion rejecting the teachers' lawyer-fee application. The article body calls the school '00중'. English renderings are the research agent's (an AI's) own translations; no human bilingual review.","independence_group":"seogwipo-tv-2026-10-06"}],"version":1,"ai_roles":["others_use"],"contexts":["education","work","justice"],"unknowns":["The number of victim teachers: Yonhap-chain reports say five ('교사 5명 등'); police withheld the number on 23 September and the figure's origin is not stated.","Whether the 10-20 current students and the graduate the victim teacher says she recognised on the phone are victims: police say no student at the school was a victim and one student at a different school was confirmed; the teachers dispute the identification procedure.","The filming for which the student was booked took place around mid-July 2026 during a school field trip (News1; Jejusori: a cinema visit); the teachers say physical contact and stalking date from 2025 (Halla Ilbo), so the start of the series is unknown; the record keeps July 2026 with month precision for the filming.","Whether the 2025 physical-contact and 2026 stalking allegations in the original complaint are part of the case referred to the juvenile division.","The court handling the juvenile protection case is not named; the referral dates (22 and 24 September) come from the teachers' account of the notifications they received, and no court or prosecution record was read.","The tool used; outlets describe the material variously as composites, deepfake images and deepfake video; whether the composites are separately charged.","The student's age and grade.","How the juvenile division disposes of the case and whether the teachers' additional evidence and victim opinion are considered.","Korean bodies were read by the model without human bilingual review.","Which additional criminal complaint the rejected lawyer-fee application concerned, which body issued the written opinion, and its date. Seogwipo Broadcasting refers only to the education authority and names neither the school (written '00중') nor the region for this case; it names Seogwipo only for the earlier comparison cases. This review links the report to this case by inference from the outlet's Jeju location, the case description (victim teachers of a middle-school deepfake sexual-offence case) and the legal-cost dispute already recorded in c13 and c15."],"geography":{"basis":"A middle school on Jeju, South Korea; investigated by Jeju Dongbu Police Station; the teachers work there (Seoul Shinmun, News1). Per the victim teachers' notifications the case was sent to the prosecution on 22 September and to a court's juvenile division on 24 September 2026 (Seoul Shinmun, News1, Segye, Halla Ilbo); the court is not named but is the Korean court handling this Jeju juvenile case, so court_countries is KR.","court_countries":["KR"],"event_countries":["KR"],"affected_person_countries":["KR"]},"publication":{"basis":"Full review on 2026-10-06 adding Seogwipo Broadcasting's 6 October report that the education authority rejected the victim teachers' lawyer-fee application for an additional criminal complaint. Police say forensic examination of the student's phone found sexual composites made from footage of teachers, so the teachers were depicted in the AI output (depicted_or_impersonated); the adverse experience continues for the victim teachers, documented by a police announcement, the teachers' public statements, police replies, the education office's statements and now the Seogwipo report. The teachers' statements are one origin whichever outlet carries them, the police replies one origin, the office briefing one origin and the Seogwipo report its own origin, so no claim is corroborated; c3 is recorded as disputed with both positions. No teacher, student or school is named; the student is a minor; officials are described by role.","reviewed_on":"2026-10-06"},"ai_involvement":{"basis":"Police say forensic examination of the student's phone found sexual composites made from footage of teachers; outlets describe them as deepfake composites, deepfake images (Segye, JoongAng) or deepfake video (Jejusori, KTU statement via Seoul Shinmun); the tool is not named and no forensic description of the method is reported. The primary charge is illegal filming, and police told News1 they found no indication the composites were distributed.","status":"reported"},"person_relations":["depicted_or_impersonated"]},"name":"Jeju: police refer a middle-school student over secretly filming teachers and making sexual deepfake composites; teachers dispute victim count and legal aid","summary":"Jeju Dongbu police announced on 23 September 2026 that a student at a middle school on Jeju had been referred to prosecutors without detention on 17 September for violating the Sexual Violence Punishment Act (filming with a camera or similar device). The student's phone was voluntarily submitted by his guardians and forensically examined; the examination found footage relating to some teachers and some sexual composites, and the student admitted the conduct. News1 reported that the student was booked for filming a teacher's body with his phone during a school field trip around mid-July 2026, that the offending had continued for several months with multiple victims, and that police found no indication the composites had been distributed. Police told Seoul Shinmun there were more victim teachers than the one first reported but withheld the number to avoid secondary harm, and that no student at the school was a victim; the Jeju teachers' union questioned whether the full scope of harm had been established. According to the union, two months on the victim teachers were receiving hospital treatment and counselling while teaching daily, gave police statements on 14 September without a lawyer, attended the regional teachers' rights protection committee on 17 September without institutional support, wrote the criminal complaint themselves, and were offered 3.3 million won in legal fees for all of them together, payable after the case ends; two requests to meet the superintendent were not accepted. On 29 September one of the victim teachers gave a press interview at the Jeju Teachers' Union office. She said that early in the investigation she had seen on the student's phone material showing other teachers and current students, had made a list of the people and types of harm, and that the material shown to her at the police victim examination was considerably less than what she had seen; Yonhap-chain outlets quote her as saying the students she recognised numbered 10 to 20 and that a graduate had suffered worse deepfakes. She said investigators asked the school only to identify the perpetrator and never requested material to identify the students in the footage, and that the school sent parents a letter premised on there being no student victims. Police replied that phone forensics had been thorough, that every act beyond social norms had been identified and proven, and that one student victim had been confirmed, a student at a different school. The teachers were notified on 22 September that the case had gone to the prosecution and on 24 September that it had been sent to the court's juvenile division as a juvenile protection case, before they had submitted further evidence and a victim opinion. The teacher said the original complaint had also asked police to examine whether physical contact in 2025 was forcible molestation and whether repeated approaching and waiting in 2026 was stalking, and Halla Ilbo reports that such conduct is said to date from 2025. Yonhap-chain reports describe the charged victims as five teachers. The same day the education office briefed on legal-aid rules (up to 6.6 million won per instance when a teacher is sued, 3.3 million won per case when a teacher files a complaint; office lawyers cannot act as a teacher's private counsel), said it had linked the teachers to the national Digital Sexual Crime Victim Support Center, announced an integrated support system through a hotline, and its section head said the office was sorry that early support had not been felt. The KTU Jeju branch (28 September) and the Jeju Teachers' Union (14 and 29 September) demand a victim-support system, per-teacher legal fees paid in advance and a dedicated support team. On 6 October 2026 Seogwipo Broadcasting reported, citing people in education and a tipster, that the education authority had finally rejected the victim teachers' application for lawyer fees for an additional criminal complaint, saying in a written opinion that with a police investigation already under way a further complaint could hardly stop or prevent the infringement of their teaching, so the support requirements were not met; critics contrast this with full legal-cost support in earlier sexual-offence cases.","incidentDate":"2026-07-01","incidentKind":"ongoing_experience","incidentDatePrecision":"month","exposurePattern":"unknown","reportedDate":"2026-09-23","aiSystem":"AI image-compositing ('deepfake') tool; not named in the police announcement","aiProduct":"Unidentified image tool","severity":"high","verificationStatus":"credible","harmCategories":[],"harmOutcomes":["exploitation_or_abuse","psychological_distress","professional_harm"],"harmOutcomeSummary":"Teachers were secretly filmed by a student and some footage was turned into sexual deepfake composites; two months on, per the union and the teachers' own account, the victim teachers are in hospital treatment and counselling while continuing to teach at the same school and handled the police statement, the protection committee and the criminal complaint without legal or institutional support. One teacher says she was afraid to go to school each morning because the student waited on the stairs to film her, and that physical contact and stalking date from 2025 (teacher's account). The filming and composites are admitted per police; the teachers' situation is the union's and the teachers' account.","frameworkFacets":[],"causationStatus":"supported","participantUsersAffectedMin":0,"otherPeopleHarmedMin":6,"affectedCountStatus":"documented_minimum","affectedCountEvidence":"Yonhap-chain reports (Segye, JoongAng, 29 September) describe the charged victims as five teachers ('교사 5명 등'); police told News1 and JoongAng that one student at a different school was confirmed as a victim. Five plus one gives a documented minimum of 6. The 10-20 current students and the graduate the victim teacher says she recognised are her account, disputed by police, and are not counted. Followers, parents and the school community are not counted. Documented minimum 6.","victimAgeRange":"adult","jurisdiction":"KR","platformType":"other","outcomeType":"criminal_charges","outcomeStatus":"ongoing","primarySourceUrl":"https://www.seoul.co.kr/news/society/accident/2026/09/23/20260923500094","primarySourceLabel":"Seoul Shinmun, 23 September 2026: student who filmed teachers and made deepfakes referred to prosecutors; police say no student victims at the school","firstPublishedAt":"2026-09-23T03:45:58.820151+00:00","updatedAt":"2026-10-06T03:13:01.412468+00:00","scopeVersion":"facts-v3","tags":["deepfake","south-korea","jeju","teachers","school","illegal-filming","prosecutor-referral","depicted-or-impersonated","juvenile-protection-case","teachers-union","education-office","legal-aid"]},{"id":"2026-brazil-openai-report-user-detained-without-charge","caseFacts":{"claims":[{"id":"c1","status":"corroborated","evidence":[{"locator":"Passage concerning this claim (paraphrased; identifying and method details omitted): Brazilian authorities arrested a man in June 2026 after OpenAI reported ChatGPT messages to the FBI and the alert was passed to police. Police described threats to harm a family member; the man disputed intent.","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"},{"locator":"Passage concerning this claim (paraphrased; identifying and method details omitted): Brazilian authorities arrested a man in June 2026 after OpenAI reported ChatGPT messages to the FBI and the alert was passed to police. Police described threats to harm a family member; the man disputed intent.","relation":"supports","source_id":"s3"},{"locator":"Passage concerning this claim (paraphrased; identifying and method details omitted): Brazilian authorities arrested a man in June 2026 after OpenAI reported ChatGPT messages to the FBI and the alert was passed to police. Police described threats to harm a family member; the man disputed intent.","relation":"supports","source_id":"s4"},{"locator":"Passage concerning this claim (paraphrased; identifying and method details omitted): Brazilian authorities arrested a man in June 2026 after OpenAI reported ChatGPT messages to the FBI and the alert was passed to police. Police described threats to harm a family member; the man disputed intent.","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"}],"assertion":"Brazilian authorities arrested a man in June 2026 after OpenAI reported ChatGPT messages to the FBI and the alert was passed to police. Police described threats to harm a family member; the man disputed intent.","causal_attribution":"Police account carried by two independent chains (BBC interviews; G1 with civil-police material)."},{"id":"c2","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"Passage concerning this claim (paraphrased; identifying and method details omitted): He was held in pre-trial detention for 54 days; on 13 August 2026 a court granted habeas corpus because, after more than 50 days, the police inquiry had not been concluded and no charge had been filed, and imposed an electronic ankle monitor and a ban on approaching or contacting his son and the child's mother; no charges had been brought and the investigation continues.","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"},{"locator":"Passage concerning this claim (paraphrased; identifying and method details omitted): He was held in pre-trial detention for 54 days; on 13 August 2026 a court granted habeas corpus because, after more than 50 days, the police inquiry had not been concluded and no charge had been filed, and imposed an electronic ankle monitor and a ban on approaching or contacting his son and the child's mother; no charges had been brought and the investigation continues.","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"}],"assertion":"He was held in pre-trial detention for 54 days; on 13 August 2026 a court granted habeas corpus because, after more than 50 days, the police inquiry had not been concluded and no charge had been filed, and imposed an electronic ankle monitor and a ban on approaching or contacting his son and the child's mother; no charges had been brought and the investigation continues.","causal_attribution":"Court decision as reported by the BBC (single chain; the Spanish version is the same report)."},{"id":"c3","status":"disputed","evidence":[{"locator":"Passage concerning this claim (paraphrased; identifying and method details omitted): Police say the reported messages were corroborated by material found during the arrest. The man denied intending harm and his lawyer disputed whether any concrete step had been taken.","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"},{"locator":"Passage concerning this claim (paraphrased; identifying and method details omitted): Police say the reported messages were corroborated by material found during the arrest. The man denied intending harm and his lawyer disputed whether any concrete step had been taken.","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"}],"assertion":"Police say the reported messages were corroborated by material found during the arrest. The man denied intending harm and his lawyer disputed whether any concrete step had been taken.","causal_attribution":"Police and defence accounts as quoted by the BBC; the dispute concerns intent, not the detention."},{"id":"c4","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"Passage concerning this claim (paraphrased; identifying and method details omitted): OpenAI provided investigators with the user's details and the messages he sent but not ChatGPT's replies; it did not answer the BBC's question why and said it may notify law enforcement when it detects a credible and imminent risk of harm to others; G1 reported that OpenAI's process combines automated systems and human moderators who may contact outside bodies, as happened in this case, and that the police chief called it the third such case in Brazil.","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"},{"locator":"Passage concerning this claim (paraphrased; identifying and method details omitted): OpenAI provided investigators with the user's details and the messages he sent but not ChatGPT's replies; it did not answer the BBC's question why and said it may notify law enforcement when it detects a credible and imminent risk of harm to others; G1 reported that OpenAI's process combines automated systems and human moderators who may contact outside bodies, as happened in this case, and that the police chief called it the third such case in Brazil.","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"},{"locator":"Passage concerning this claim (paraphrased; identifying and method details omitted): OpenAI provided investigators with the user's details and the messages he sent but not ChatGPT's replies; it did not answer the BBC's question why and said it may notify law enforcement when it detects a credible and imminent risk of harm to others; G1 reported that OpenAI's process combines automated systems and human moderators who may contact outside bodies, as happened in this case, and that the police chief called it the third such case in Brazil.","relation":"supports","source_id":"s3"}],"assertion":"OpenAI provided investigators with the user's details and the messages he sent but not ChatGPT's replies; it did not answer the BBC's question why and said it may notify law enforcement when it detects a credible and imminent risk of harm to others; G1 reported that OpenAI's process combines automated systems and human moderators who may contact outside bodies, as happened in this case, and that the police chief called it the third such case in Brazil.","causal_attribution":"OpenAI statements and investigators' accounts as reported; the absence of the replies is stated by investigators to the BBC."},{"id":"c5","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"Passage concerning this claim (paraphrased; identifying and method details omitted): Police say the conversations ran for about two months and an alert reached Brazilian authorities in June 2026, three days before the arrest.","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"},{"locator":"Passage concerning this claim (paraphrased; identifying and method details omitted): Police say the conversations ran for about two months and an alert reached Brazilian authorities in June 2026, three days before the arrest.","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"}],"assertion":"Police say the conversations ran for about two months and an alert reached Brazilian authorities in June 2026, three days before the arrest.","causal_attribution":"BBC account (single chain)."}],"effects":[{"label":"held 54 days in pre-trial detention without charge after OpenAI reported his messages; released under electronic monitoring and a ban on contacting his son and the child's mother","claim_id":"c2","direction":"negative"},{"label":"police say the report let them arrest him a day before the date on which they believed the plan against the child would be carried out","claim_id":"c1","direction":"positive"}],"sources":[{"id":"s1","url":"https://www.bbc.com/portuguese/articles/c8dn1l7vr6ro","kind":"news_report","access":"read","language":"pt-br","translation_note":"Read live in Portuguese on 2026-09-23 (BBC News Brasil, Iara Diniz, 14 August 2026): messages seen by the BBC, police chief and defence-lawyer interviews, the habeas corpus release and precautionary measures. Translated by the reviewer.","independence_group":"bbc"},{"id":"s2","url":"https://www.bbc.com/mundo/articles/cxnvlg14e1p8o","kind":"news_report","access":"read","language":"es","translation_note":"Read live in Spanish on 2026-09-23 (BBC News Mundo, 16 September 2026): Spanish text produced by AI translation from an English-language BBC original and reviewed by a BBC journalist before publication (stated in the article); same reporting chain as s1, which is preferred where the two diverge. Translated by the reviewer.","independence_group":"bbc"},{"id":"s3","url":"https://g1.globo.com/tecnologia/noticia/2026/06/27/como-chatgpt-identificou-plano-de-pai-para-matar-o-filho-e-levou-alerta-para-autoridades.ghtml","kind":"news_report","access":"read","language":"pt-BR","translation_note":"Read live in Portuguese on 2026-09-23 (G1, 27 June 2026): arrest on 19 June, the OpenAI to FBI to Ministry of Justice to state police chain, message images from the civil police, OpenAI statement, police chief to TV Gazeta. Translated by the reviewer.","independence_group":"g1-globo"},{"id":"s4","url":"https://www.migalhas.com.br/quentes/459083/pai-e-preso-apos-planejar-morte-do-filho-no-chatgpt-veja-analise","kind":"news_report","access":"read","language":"pt","translation_note":"Read live in Portuguese on 2026-09-23 (Migalhas, 26 June 2026): summary attributed to an earlier G1/TV Gazeta report of 26 June, with lawyers' analysis; same Globo chain as s3. Translated by the reviewer.","independence_group":"g1-globo"}],"version":1,"ai_roles":["own_use","institutional_use"],"contexts":["justice","relationships","privacy"],"unknowns":["What ChatGPT replied during the two months of conversations (OpenAI did not provide the replies).","Whether charges will be brought after the forensic results and phone examination.","Whether he in fact contacted a hired killer, as he told ChatGPT.","The exact date OpenAI made its report to the FBI.","His identity (withheld by the BBC; not sought here)."],"geography":{"basis":"Arrest at his home in rural [identifying or operational detail withheld], [identifying or operational detail withheld] (BBC, G1, Migalhas); he lives there; habeas corpus granted by the Brazilian court handling the pre-trial detention (BBC: a Justiça). OpenAI's report went via the FBI in the United States, which is not an event location.","court_countries":["BR"],"event_countries":["BR"],"affected_person_countries":["BR"]},"publication":{"basis":"Published under the 2026-09-15 charter as a contextual case: an AI operator's report about a user, generated by ChatGPT safety systems, led to 54 days of pre-trial detention without charge, ended by habeas corpus. Two independent reporting chains (BBC; Globo) support the arrest and its cause; the release and its terms rest on the BBC. The police account that the report prevented a planned killing is preserved as context and intent is recorded as disputed. Nobody is named; the child is not identified. The charter states that this class needs no separate ruling.","reviewed_on":"2026-09-23"},"ai_involvement":{"basis":"He conversed with ChatGPT for about two months; OpenAI's safety systems flagged the conversations and the company reported them to the FBI, which passed them to Brazilian authorities (BBC, G1, with the police chief's account). OpenAI did not provide ChatGPT's replies, so what the chatbot said is unknown.","status":"supported"},"person_relations":["communicated_with","made_claim_about"]},"name":"Brazilian man detained without charge after OpenAI reported messages; he denies intending harm","summary":"BBC reporting describes a Brazilian man detained for 54 days after OpenAI reported messages to the FBI and Brazilian authorities. Police described a credible threat; he denied intending harm. A court released him without charges under protective conditions. The report did not include ChatGPT’s replies.","incidentDate":"2026-06-19","incidentEndDate":"2026-08-13","incidentKind":"bounded_series","incidentDatePrecision":"range","exposurePattern":"repeated_interactions","reportedDate":"2026-06-26","aiSystem":"ChatGPT (OpenAI); OpenAI's automated detection and human moderation systems, which generated the report","aiProduct":"ChatGPT and OpenAI moderation","aiCompany":"OpenAI","severity":"high","verificationStatus":"credible","harmCategories":[],"harmOutcomes":["loss_of_liberty","legal_harm"],"harmOutcomeSummary":"The user was held in pre-trial detention for 54 days without charge on the strength of his ChatGPT messages as reported by OpenAI, then released under electronic monitoring and a no-contact order covering his son and the child's mother while the investigation continues. Police say the report was corroborated at the scene and prevented a planned killing; he and his lawyer dispute any intent. The consequence to him is undisputed; whether it was warranted is contested.","frameworkFacets":[],"causationStatus":"supported","participantUsersAffectedMin":1,"otherPeopleHarmedMin":0,"affectedCountStatus":"exact","affectedCountEvidence":"One person, the ChatGPT user who was detained (BBC, G1). The child and the child's mother are not counted as harmed. Exact 1.","victimAgeRange":"adult","jurisdiction":"BR","platformType":"chatbot","outcomeType":"investigation_opened","outcomeStatus":"ongoing","primarySourceUrl":"https://www.bbc.com/portuguese/articles/c8dn1l7vr6ro","primarySourceLabel":"BBC News Brasil — report on the case","firstPublishedAt":"2026-09-23T03:45:57.312143+00:00","updatedAt":"2026-10-05T11:09:49.574842+00:00","scopeVersion":"facts-v3","tags":["chatgpt","openai","brazil","espirito-santo","law-enforcement-report","pre-trial-detention","fbi","institutional-response","communicated-with","made-claim-about"]},{"id":"2026-solo-semarang-ex-boyfriend-ai-deepfake-porn","caseFacts":{"claims":[{"id":"c1","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'Pelaku ini mengedit wajahnya dari korban yang kemudian itu dipasangkan dengan badan seseorang dengan menggunakan AI yang wajahnya asli korban' (the perpetrator edited the victim's face and attached it to someone's body using AI, the face being the victim's real face); 'Konten hasil rekayasa kemudian diunggah pelaku melalui platform X. Polisi memastikan materi itu tidak diperjualbelikan' (the fabricated content was then uploaded by the perpetrator on X; police confirmed it was not sold).","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"},{"locator":"'Wajah korban ditempelkan pada tubuh perempuan lain dalam kondisi tanpa busana sehingga seolah-olah korban tampil dalam konten pornografi' (the victim's face was attached to another woman's unclothed body so that the victim appeared in pornographic content).","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"},{"locator":"'Yang diedit itu wajah korban. Kemudian dipasang pada tubuh orang lain sehingga seolah-olah itu korban, fotonya telanjang bulat, ditemukan di Instagram dan Telegram' (what was edited was the victim's face, then placed on someone else's body so it looked like the victim, fully naked, found on Instagram and Telegram); 'terdapat pula video berbau pornografi dengan wajah korban yang diduga merupakan hasil editan AI' (there was also a pornographic video with the victim's face believed to be an AI edit).","relation":"supports","source_id":"s3"}],"assertion":"The complainant's face was composited with AI onto another woman's naked body in images and a pornographic video; the suspect uploaded the content to his X account and did not sell it, and the complainant's lawyer said the material was found on Instagram and Telegram.","causal_attribution":"Police statement of 6 August 2026 (based on the investigation and the suspect's admission) and the complainant's lawyer (based on the material found); the two accounts differ on where the material was found. Recorded as reported (not corroborated) because the pornographic video (lawyer chain only) and the X upload / no-sale detail (police chain only) rest on single chains; the 28 January complaint and the 4 August detention are carried by both chains."},{"id":"c2","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'Korban mengetahui hal tersebut pada 1 Januari 2026. Pihak korban pun telah melapor ke Polda Jateng dengan nomor aduan STPA/182/I/2026/Ditressiber' (the victim learned of it on 1 January 2026; the victim's side reported to the Central Java police under complaint number STPA/182/I/2026/Ditressiber).","relation":"supports","source_id":"s3"},{"locator":"'Perkara ini bermula ketika seorang perempuan mendatangi Polda Jawa Tengah pada 28 Januari 2026' (the case began when a woman came to the Central Java regional police on 28 January 2026); 'Polda Jawa Tengah menerbitkan laporan polisi pada 31 Juli 2026' (the regional police issued the police report on 31 July 2026); 'ditangkap di tempat kosnya di kawasan Gunungpati, Semarang. Penyidik Polda Jawa Tengah kemudian menahannya di Rutan Polda Jawa Tengah sejak Selasa (4/8/2026)' (arrested at his boarding house in the Gunungpati area of Semarang; investigators then detained him at the regional police detention centre from Tuesday 4 August 2026).","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"},{"locator":"'dijerat dengan Pasal 51 juncto Pasal 35 Undang-Undang Nomor 11 Tahun 2008 tentang Informasi dan Transaksi Elektronik (ITE) serta Pasal 407 Undang-Undang Nomor 1 Tahun 2026' (charged under Article 51 in conjunction with Article 35 of Law 11 of 2008 on Electronic Information and Transactions and Article 407 of Law No. 1 of 2026); 'ancaman hukuman maksimal adalah 12 tahun penjara dan denda paling banyak Rp12 miliar' (the maximum penalty is 12 years' imprisonment and a fine of up to Rp12 billion).","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"},{"locator":"'korban telah melaporkan kasus tersebut ke Polda Jawa Tengah sejak 28 Januari 2026' (the victim reported the case to the Central Java regional police on 28 January 2026); 'penyidik akhirnya menetapkan tersangka dan melakukan penahanan terhadap pelaku pada 4 Agustus 2026' (investigators finally named the suspect and detained him on 4 August 2026).","relation":"supports","source_id":"s6"}],"assertion":"The complainant learned of the material on 1 January 2026; she and her family reported to the Central Java regional police cyber directorate on 28 January 2026; police issued a formal report on 31 July, arrested the suspect at a boarding house in Gunungpati, Semarang, and detained him on 4 August 2026; he is charged under Articles 51 and 35 of the Electronic Information and Transactions Law and an article printed as Article 407 of 'Law No. 1 of 2026', with a maximum of 12 years' imprisonment and a fine of up to Rp12 billion.","causal_attribution":"Dates from the police statement and the complainant's lawyer agree on the 28 January complaint and 4 August detention; the discovery date comes from the lawyer alone. Recorded as reported (not corroborated) because the 1 January discovery date (lawyer only), the 31 July formal report (police only) and the statute text rest on single chains; the 28 January complaint and the 4 August detention are carried by both chains."},{"id":"c3","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'pelaku nekat membuat konten deepfake AI porno diduga karena sakit hati setelah hubungan asmara antara dirinya dan korban berakhir secara putus-nyambung' (the perpetrator made the pornographic AI deepfake content allegedly out of hurt after his on-and-off romantic relationship with the victim ended).","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"},{"locator":"'sempat memergoki ... sedang melakukan panggilan telepon video dengan perempuan lain. Hal itu memicu kemarahan' (she had caught him on a video call with another woman, which triggered her anger).","relation":"supports","source_id":"s5"}],"assertion":"Police said the suspect admitted acting out of resentment after an on-and-off relationship with the complainant ended; her lawyer said she ended the relationship after finding him on a video call with another woman.","causal_attribution":"Motive as stated by the police spokesman from the suspect's admission and by the complainant's lawyer."},{"id":"c4","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'Iya sempat psikologisnya terkena, susah tidur, murung, malu. Dia tahu gambar-gambar itu kan dari teman-teman ceweknya. Malu dan drop' (yes, she was affected psychologically, could not sleep, was withdrawn, ashamed; she learned of the images from her female friends; ashamed and down); 'sempat stres, sempat murung dan sudah tidak ada harapan lagi waktu itu' (she was stressed, withdrawn and had no hope at that time); 'Kuasa hukum korban meminta Dinas Pemberdayaan Perempuan dan Perlindungan Anak memberikan pendampingan psikologis secara intensif' (the victim's lawyer asked the women's empowerment and child protection office to provide intensive psychological support).","relation":"supports","source_id":"s4"},{"locator":"'Stresnya setengah mati, enggak bisa tidur. Nangis dia, murung sekali' (she was extremely stressed, could not sleep, cried, was very withdrawn).","relation":"supports","source_id":"s5"}],"assertion":"According to her lawyer, the complainant had trouble sleeping, was withdrawn and ashamed, cried, at one point had no hope, and has since recovered some spirit; he asked the local women's and children's protection office for intensive psychological support.","causal_attribution":"Interested-party account: the complainant's lawyer in two interviews on 7 August 2026; no clinical source."},{"id":"c5","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'penelusuran tim kuasa hukum menemukan total tujuh orang yang diduga menjadi korban manipulasi konten pornografi berbasis AI oleh tersangka. Namun, enam korban lainnya belum membuat laporan resmi' (the legal team's tracing found seven people in total allegedly victims of AI pornographic manipulation by the suspect, but the other six had not filed formal reports); 'Keluarga pelaku itu minta supaya berdamai' (the perpetrator's family asked for a settlement).","relation":"supports","source_id":"s4"},{"locator":"'Sementara ini korban yang terkonfirmasi baru satu orang, yaitu pelapor' (for now only one victim is confirmed, the complainant).","relation":"context","source_id":"s2"}],"assertion":"The lawyer said his team had found seven women in total allegedly targeted by the suspect, six of whom had not filed reports, and that the suspect's parents apologised and asked for an out-of-court settlement so he could continue his studies; police said only one complainant was confirmed.","causal_attribution":"The seven-woman figure and the settlement approach are the lawyer's account; police confirmed one complainant."}],"effects":[{"label":"her face was composited with AI onto pornographic images and a video that were posted on X and found on Instagram and Telegram","claim_id":"c1","direction":"negative"},{"label":"sleeplessness, withdrawal, shame and loss of hope reported by her lawyer during the nearly seven-month investigation","claim_id":"c4","direction":"negative"}],"sources":[{"id":"s1","url":"https://regional.kompas.com/read/2026/08/07/133400678/motif-mahasiswa-semarang-bikin-deepfake-ai-wajah-mantan-terancam-12-tahun","kind":"news_report","access":"read","language":"id","translation_note":"Read in Indonesian on 2026-09-19 (Kompas.com regional, published 2026-08-07 13:34 +07:00). Central Java police spokesman's written statement received on 6 August 2026. Model reading of the original; English glosses are the reviewer's.","independence_group":"polda-jateng-statement-2026-08-06"},{"id":"s2","url":"https://kumparan.com/kumparannews/mahasiswa-di-semarang-edit-foto-mantan-pacar-jadi-konten-porno-berakhir-dibui-27vvfyraEgL","kind":"news_report","access":"read","language":"id","translation_note":"Read in Indonesian on 2026-09-19 (kumparan, published 2026-08-06 09:14 UTC). Same police spokesman at the 6 August briefing; adds the statutes and the one-complainant confirmation.","independence_group":"polda-jateng-statement-2026-08-06"},{"id":"s3","url":"https://news.detik.com/berita/d-8593323/mahasiswi-di-solo-jadi-objek-deepfake-ai-porno-korban-lapor-polisi","kind":"news_report","access":"read","language":"id","translation_note":"Read in Indonesian on 2026-09-19 (detikcom citing detikJateng, published 2026-07-28 10:29 +07:00; the lawyer's remarks are dated Monday 27 July 2026). Complainant's lawyer; police spokesman said he was checking. Predates the arrest.","independence_group":"complainant-lawyer"},{"id":"s4","url":"https://indonesiaonline.co.id/deepfake-porno-di-solo-trauma-korban-dan-lambannya-proses-hukum/","kind":"news_report","access":"read","language":"id","translation_note":"Read in Indonesian on 2026-09-19 (indonesiaonline.co.id, published 2026-08-08 10:32 +07:00). Feature built on a phone interview with the complainant's lawyer on 7 August 2026.","independence_group":"complainant-lawyer"},{"id":"s5","url":"https://rejogja.republika.co.id/berita/tjglkl282/dendam-diputusin-mahasiswa-semarang-edit-wajah-mantan-pacar-pakai-ai-jadi-konten-porno","kind":"news_report","access":"read","language":"id","translation_note":"Read in Indonesian on 2026-09-19 (Republika Jogja, published 2026-08-08 23:24 +07:00). Interview with the complainant's lawyer on 7 August 2026 on the relationship history and her reaction.","independence_group":"complainant-lawyer"},{"id":"s6","url":"https://indoraya.news/keluarga-korban-desak-hukuman-maksimal-untuk-pelaku-deepfake-porno-mahasiswi-uns","kind":"news_report","access":"read","language":"id","translation_note":"Read in Indonesian on 2026-09-19 (Indoraya News, published 2026-08-06 22:28 +07:00). Complainant's lawyer at the regional police lobby on 6 August 2026; restates the statutes.","independence_group":"complainant-lawyer"}],"version":1,"ai_roles":["others_use"],"contexts":["relationships","privacy","justice","education"],"unknowns":["Whether the six other women named by the lawyer exist as complainants; police had confirmed one complainant as of 6 August 2026.","The statute printed by kumparan and Indoraya as 'Undang-Undang Nomor 1 Tahun 2026' is recorded as printed; it may be a misprint for the 2023 Criminal Code (Law No. 1 of 2023), whose Article 407 concerns pornography. Not verified.","The identity of the woman whose body appears in the composites is unknown to police.","No indictment, court filing or trial date had been reported by 2026-09-19.","The AI tool used is not identified.","When the content was created and uploaded is not reported; 1 January 2026 is the date the complainant learned of it from friends."],"geography":{"basis":"The complainant studies in Solo and the suspect was arrested in Semarang, both in Central Java, Indonesia; the case is held by the Central Java regional police. No court proceeding has begun, so court_countries is empty.","court_countries":[],"event_countries":["ID"],"affected_person_countries":["ID"]},"publication":{"basis":"Published under the 2026-09-15 charter as a harmful-artifact case with a criminal investigation: AI-composited pornographic images and video of a named-by-initial student, posted online by an ex-partner who was detained after seven months. Six Indonesian items read from two account chains (police statement and the complainant's lawyer). The complainant and suspect appear only by initials in the sources and are not identified here; the lawyer is not named; one cited URL identifies the complainant's university.","reviewed_on":"2026-09-19"},"ai_involvement":{"basis":"The Central Java police spokesman said the suspect edited the complainant's face onto another person's body using AI ('menggunakan AI'); her lawyer described the material as AI manipulation. No forensic report was inspected and the tool is not named.","status":"reported"},"person_relations":["depicted_or_impersonated"]},"name":"Solo and Semarang, Indonesia: a university student's face was composited with AI onto pornographic images and a video by her ex-boyfriend and posted online; the suspect was detained after a nearly seven-month investigation","summary":"A female student at a state university in Solo (Surakarta), Central Java, learned on 1 January 2026 from friends that her face had been composited onto pornographic images and a video, which her lawyer said were found on Instagram and Telegram. Her family reported the case to the Central Java regional police cyber directorate on 28 January 2026. Police issued a formal police report on 31 July, arrested her ex-boyfriend, a university student in Semarang, at his boarding house in Gunungpati on 4 August 2026, and detained him. The police spokesman said the suspect used AI to place the complainant's face on another woman's naked body so that she appeared in pornographic content, uploaded it to his X account, did not sell it, and acted out of resentment after an on-and-off relationship ended. He faces charges under Articles 51 and 35 of the Electronic Information and Transactions Law and an article printed by two outlets as 'Law No. 1 of 2026', with a maximum of 12 years' imprisonment. Her lawyer said she could not sleep, withdrew, felt shame and at one point lost hope, that his team had found seven women in total allegedly targeted of whom six had not reported, and that the suspect's parents asked for an out-of-court settlement; police said only one complainant was confirmed.","incidentDate":"2026-01-01","incidentKind":"bounded_series","incidentDatePrecision":"day","exposurePattern":"repeated_interactions","reportedDate":"2026-07-28","aiSystem":"AI face-composite tool used to place the complainant's face on pornographic images and a video (tool not identified); content posted on X and found on Instagram and Telegram","aiProduct":"Unidentified image and video tool","severity":"high","verificationStatus":"credible","harmCategories":[],"harmOutcomes":["exploitation_or_abuse","psychological_distress","reputational_harm"],"harmOutcomeSummary":"AI-composited pornographic images and a video of the complainant were posted online; her lawyer reported sleeplessness, withdrawal, shame and loss of hope during the seven months before a suspect was named.","frameworkFacets":[],"causationStatus":"supported","participantUsersAffectedMin":0,"otherPeopleHarmedMin":1,"affectedCountStatus":"documented_minimum","affectedCountEvidence":"One complainant confirmed by police ('korban yang terkonfirmasi baru satu orang, yaitu pelapor'). Her lawyer says his team found seven women in total, six of whom have not reported; that figure is an interested party's count and is not added.","victimAgeRange":"adult","jurisdiction":"ID","platformType":"other","outcomeType":"investigation_opened","outcomeStatus":"ongoing","primarySourceUrl":"https://regional.kompas.com/read/2026/08/07/133400678/motif-mahasiswa-semarang-bikin-deepfake-ai-wajah-mantan-terancam-12-tahun","primarySourceLabel":"Kompas.com, 7 August 2026: Motif Mahasiswa Semarang Bikin Deepfake AI Wajah Mantan, Terancam 12 Tahun Penjara (Central Java police statement)","firstPublishedAt":"2026-09-20T03:19:38.26217+00:00","updatedAt":"2026-09-30T01:17:53.636775+00:00","scopeVersion":"facts-v3","tags":["deepfake","ncii","ex-partner","university","indonesia","central-java","criminal-investigation","depicted-or-impersonated","image-based-abuse"]},{"id":"2026-singapore-deepfake-zoom-pm-impersonation-funding-scam","caseFacts":{"claims":[{"id":"c1","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'A person lost at least $4.9 million after falling for a scam involving the impersonation of senior government officials'; 'received a WhatsApp message with a profile photo of Mr Wong Hong Kuan'; 'transferred the money through a series of transactions to a corporate bank account supplied by the scammers'.","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"},{"locator":"'He lost at least $4.9 million after believing that Prime Minister Lawrence Wong had sought his help'; 'the email was sent from a Proton Mail account'; 'invited to a Zoom video conference ... fabricated using deepfake artificial intelligence technology'.","relation":"supports","source_id":"s3"},{"locator":"'In one case, a victim lost at least S$4.9 million (US$3.8 million) in what was claimed to be funding assistance related to the Strait of Hormuz'.","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"A businessman lost at least S$4.9 million after being approached by scammers posing as the Secretary to the Cabinet, signing an NDA, receiving a fake letter of guarantee with the Prime Minister's signature, attending a deepfake Zoom conference of government officials, and then transferring money in a series of transactions to a corporate account.","causal_attribution":"Singapore Police Force advisory relayed by three outlets; single official chain."},{"id":"c2","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'the speech did not synchronise with the speakers' lips'; 'the speech was broadcast via one account throughout the call'; 'end with a deepfake video of PM Wong delivering closing remarks, which included an acknowledgement of the victim's attendance'.","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"Police obtained the footage of the fabricated Zoom conference depicting the Prime Minister, the President, Minister Indranee Rajah, MAS representatives and foreign officials, and identified deepfake indicators: speech out of sync with lips, audio broadcast from one account, and a distorted background and Zoom logo; the fake Prime Minister's closing remarks acknowledged the victim's attendance.","causal_attribution":"Police statement on their own examination of the footage, reported by CNA."}],"effects":[{"label":"a businessman lost at least S$4.9 million after a deepfake video conference of government officials and a fake letter of guarantee","claim_id":"c1","direction":"negative"}],"sources":[{"id":"s1","url":"https://www.channelnewsasia.com/singapore/impersonation-scam-fake-zoom-meeting-footage-lawrence-wong-tharman-indranee-police-6125691","kind":"news_report","access":"read","language":"en","translation_note":"Read in English on 2026-09-18 (CNA, 16 May 2026). Reports the police release of the fabricated Zoom footage, the participants depicted and the deepfake indicators.","independence_group":"spf-advisory"},{"id":"s2","url":"https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/victim-loses-at-least-4-9m-in-scam-involving-deepfakes-of-pm-wong-government-officials","kind":"news_report","access":"read","language":"en","translation_note":"Read in English on 2026-09-18 (Straits Times, 14 May 2026). Reports the SPF advisory: WhatsApp and proton.me approach, NDA, letter of guarantee, Zoom call, transfers, and the 9 May SIM-card charges.","independence_group":"spf-advisory"},{"id":"s3","url":"https://www.asiaone.com/singapore/police-spf-advisory-government-official-impersonation-scam-pm-lawrence-wong-funding-assistance-hormuz-49-million","kind":"news_report","access":"read","language":"en","translation_note":"Read in English on 2026-09-18 (AsiaOne, 13/14 May 2026). Same SPF advisory with screenshots of the WhatsApp and email approach.","independence_group":"spf-advisory"}],"version":1,"ai_roles":["others_use"],"contexts":["finance","public_services"],"unknowns":["The victim's identity, business and the exact date of the transfers are not published (advisory 14 May 2026).","No arrest for this loss or recovery of funds is reported.","The deepfake tools used are not identified.","Whether the victim has pursued civil recovery is unknown."],"geography":{"basis":"Singapore Police Force advisory; the victim is described as a Singapore business professional who had dealt with government officials (Straits Times, CNA). No court proceeding for this loss is reported; the 9 May SIM-card charges concern earlier cases.","court_countries":[],"event_countries":["SG"],"affected_person_countries":["SG"]},"publication":{"basis":"Published under the 2026-09-15 charter as an impersonation-fraud case with a large documented loss to one person, where the police examined and released the AI-generated footage. Three Singapore outlets read, all relaying SPF advisories; claims recorded as reported. Victim unnamed; impersonated officials are public figures.","reviewed_on":"2026-09-18"},"ai_involvement":{"basis":"The Singapore Police Force obtained the Zoom footage and described specific deepfake indicators (speech out of sync with lips, audio broadcast from a single account, distorted background and logo). The AI content depicted and impersonated named officials, and the fabricated closing remarks were addressed to the victim, acknowledging his attendance, which is why communicated_with is also recorded.","status":"supported"},"person_relations":["communicated_with","depicted_or_impersonated"]},"name":"Singapore: a businessman lost at least S$4.9 million after a deepfake Zoom 'briefing' with fabricated Prime Minister Lawrence Wong and other officials asked him for 'urgent funding assistance'","summary":"In May 2026 the Singapore Police Force (SPF) reported that a man had lost at least S$4.9 million (about US$3.8 million) to a government-official impersonation scam. He received a WhatsApp message carrying the profile photo of Secretary to the Cabinet Wong Hong Kuan and an email from a proton.me address in that name, requesting urgent funding assistance for 'the situation in the Strait of Hormuz', with a fake 'letter of guarantee' bearing the Prime Minister's signature promising reimbursement within 15 business days; he signed a non-disclosure agreement and supplied a copy of his identity card. He was then invited to a Zoom video conference in which Prime Minister Lawrence Wong, President Tharman Shanmugaratnam, Minister Indranee Rajah, Monetary Authority of Singapore representatives and foreign officials appeared; all were fabricated with deepfake AI, and the closing 'remarks' by the fake Prime Minister acknowledged the victim's attendance. Contacted afterwards on WhatsApp by a scammer posing as a lawyer, he transferred the money in a series of transactions to a corporate bank account, and realised the fraud only when he contacted the real cabinet secretary. On 16 May the police released footage of the fake conference, noting lips out of sync with speech, audio broadcast from a single account and a distorted background.","incidentDate":"2026-05-01","incidentKind":"single_event","incidentDatePrecision":"month","exposurePattern":"single_interaction","reportedDate":"2026-05-14","aiSystem":"Deepfake AI video and audio fabricating Prime Minister Lawrence Wong, President Tharman Shanmugaratnam, Minister Indranee Rajah and other officials in a Zoom conference (tools not identified)","aiProduct":"Unidentified video tool","severity":"high","verificationStatus":"credible","harmCategories":[],"harmOutcomes":["financial_loss"],"harmOutcomeSummary":"A businessman transferred at least S$4.9 million to scammers after a deepfake video conference fabricating the Prime Minister and other officials; the police documented the AI-generated footage.","frameworkFacets":[],"causationStatus":"supported","participantUsersAffectedMin":0,"otherPeopleHarmedMin":1,"affectedCountStatus":"exact","affectedCountEvidence":"Police describe a single victim who lost at least S$4.9 million. Exact count of one; the impersonated officials are not counted.","victimAgeRange":"adult","jurisdiction":"SG","platformType":"other","outcomeType":"investigation_opened","outcomeStatus":"ongoing","primarySourceUrl":"https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/victim-loses-at-least-4-9m-in-scam-involving-deepfakes-of-pm-wong-government-officials","primarySourceLabel":"The Straits Times, 14 May 2026: Victim loses at least $4.9m in scam involving deepfakes of PM Wong, government officials (Singapore Police Force advisory)","firstPublishedAt":"2026-09-18T03:25:14.306192+00:00","updatedAt":"2026-09-30T01:17:53.419086+00:00","scopeVersion":"facts-v3","tags":["deepfake","government-impersonation","zoom","video-conference","fraud","singapore","financial-loss","police-documented"]},{"id":"2026-kumar-sdt-strike-off-ai-citations","caseFacts":{"claims":[{"id":"c1","status":"documented","evidence":[{"locator":"SDT judgment, Allegation 2.1 findings and the schedule of false/miscited authorities.","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"},{"locator":"RollOnFriday's listing of the bogus citations.","relation":"context","source_id":"s4"}],"assertion":"Allegation 2.1 was found proved: Kumar's 12 March 2026 Answer to the SRA's Rule 12 Statement contained misleading quotations and citations produced with generative AI, including the non-existent 'SRA v Chan [2020] EWHC 1502', the miscited 'SRA v James, MacGregor & Naylor [2018] EWCA Civ 1420' (in reality an IP case) and a misattributed Baxendale-Walker passage.","causal_attribution":"Directly established by the tribunal's written judgment; trade press accounts are consistent."},{"id":"c2","status":"documented","evidence":[{"locator":"SDT judgment, Allegation 2.2 findings and the 13 April acceptance.","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"Allegation 2.2 was found proved: his 9 April 2026 email admitting AI use was itself AI-drafted and contained further errors, which he accepted on 13 April 2026.","causal_attribution":"Directly established by the tribunal's written judgment."},{"id":"c3","status":"documented","evidence":[{"locator":"SDT judgment, sanction and reasoning passages.","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"},{"locator":"Outer Temple's case note confirming the outcome and the 'first SDT case on a lawyer's use of AI' framing.","relation":"context","source_id":"s5"}],"assertion":"On 25 August 2026 the SDT struck Kumar off the Register of Foreign Lawyers with culpability 'very high', stating it would have struck him off on either allegation alone; the tribunal invoked Ayinde v Haringey LBC [2025] EWHC 1383 (Admin).","causal_attribution":"Directly established by the tribunal's written judgment; the 'first AI case' framing comes from the SRA's counsel and is attributed."},{"id":"c4","status":"documented","evidence":[{"locator":"SDT judgment, conviction allegation and sentence passages.","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"},{"locator":"RollOnFriday's Isleworth Crown Court reference (recorded as a discrepancy; the judgment controls).","relation":"contradicts","source_id":"s4"}],"assertion":"The parallel ground was his 29 January 2024 conviction under s.21 of the Immigration, Asylum and Nationality Act 2006 — recorded by the judgment as at the Central Criminal Court (RollOnFriday says Isleworth Crown Court, a discrepancy) — sentenced on 26 April 2024 to a 12-month community order with 150 hours' unpaid work.","causal_attribution":"The conviction ground is established by the judgment; the convicting-court discrepancy across outlets is preserved."}],"effects":[{"label":"lawyer struck off after AI-generated false citations in his disciplinary defence","claim_id":"c3","direction":"negative"}],"sources":[{"id":"s1","url":"https://solicitorstribunal.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/12884-2026-Kumar-.pdf","kind":"tribunal_judgment","access":"read","language":"en","translation_note":"Judgment PDF read on 2026-09-15 (25 Aug 2026): allegations, findings, sanction, panel, and the Ayinde v Haringey invocation.","independence_group":"sdt"},{"id":"s2","url":"https://www.legalfutures.co.uk/latest-news/lawyer-struck-off-for-using-fake-ai-generated-cases-before-sdt","kind":"trade_press","access":"read","language":"en","translation_note":"Read in English on 2026-09-15 (4 Sep 2026).","independence_group":"legal-futures"},{"id":"s3","url":"https://www.lawgazette.co.uk/news/foreign-lawyer-produced-ai-generated-false-citations-at-sdt/5127825.article","kind":"trade_press","access":"read","language":"en","translation_note":"Read in English on 2026-09-15 (4 Sep 2026, Hyde).","independence_group":"law-gazette"},{"id":"s4","url":"https://www.rollonfriday.com/news-content/first-lawyer-struck-ai-addiction","kind":"trade_press","access":"read","language":"en","translation_note":"Read in English on 2026-09-15 (11 Sep 2026). Colour and the specific bogus citations; its 'AI addiction' framing is editorial joking, not a finding.","independence_group":"rollonfriday"},{"id":"s5","url":"https://www.outertemple.com/joshua-hitchens-acts-for-the-sra-in-the-first-solicitors-disciplinary-tribunal-case-on-a-lawyers-use-of-ai/","kind":"counsel_case_note","access":"read","language":"en","translation_note":"Read in English on 2026-09-15 (8 Sep 2026). SRA counsel's chambers' note: case number, dates, judgment link, and the 'first SDT case on a lawyer's use of AI' framing; participant-side account, recorded as such.","independence_group":"outer-temple"}],"version":1,"ai_roles":["own_use"],"contexts":["work","justice"],"unknowns":["The specific generative AI tool is not named in the inspected accounts.","The convicting court appears as the Central Criminal Court in the judgment and Isleworth Crown Court in RollOnFriday; the judgment controls but the discrepancy is unresolved in the inspected material.","Whether Kumar seeks to appeal the strike-off is not reported.","His employment status after the strike-off is not reported; the Law Gazette's employment background predates it."],"geography":{"basis":"Events: his practice and the SRA proceedings in England. Affected person: Kumar, on the Register of Foreign Lawyers in England and Wales. Court: the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal; the parallel conviction was at the Central Criminal Court (per the judgment; RollOnFriday's Isleworth Crown Court is a recorded discrepancy).","court_countries":["GB"],"event_countries":["GB"],"affected_person_countries":["GB"]},"publication":{"basis":"Published under the 2026-09-15 charter as an own-use, work-context adverse consequence with tribunal-found AI misconduct and a dated, career-ending sanction. This applies the charter's individual-review rule to the AI-sanction class; a class-level ruling is not required. Kumar is named in a public tribunal judgment; the parallel conviction ground is recorded for completeness and is not used to inflate the AI link. RollOnFriday's 'AI addiction' framing is recorded as editorial joking.","reviewed_on":"2026-09-15"},"ai_involvement":{"basis":"Tribunal-found: the 12 March 2026 Answer's misleading quotations and citations were produced with generative AI, and the 9 April 2026 email admitting AI use was itself AI-drafted with further errors (accepted 13 April). The specific tool is not named in the inspected accounts.","status":"supported"},"person_relations":["communicated_with"]},"name":"SDT strikes solicitor Abhishek Kumar off the Register of Foreign Lawyers after AI-generated false citations in his SRA defence","summary":"On 25 August 2026 the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal struck Abhishek Kumar off the Register of Foreign Lawyers after finding proved that his 12 March 2026 Answer to the SRA's Rule 12 Statement contained misleading quotations and citations produced with generative AI — including a non-existent 'SRA v Chan [2020] EWHC 1502' and a miscited 'SRA v James, MacGregor & Naylor [2018] EWCA Civ 1420' that is actually an intellectual-property case — and that his 9 April 2026 email admitting AI use was itself AI-drafted with further errors. The tribunal said it would have struck him off on that allegation alone; the parallel ground was his January 2024 conviction under s.21 of the Immigration, Asylum and Nationality Act 2006. This is the SDT's first case on a lawyer's use of AI, per the SRA's counsel.","incidentDate":"2026-03-12","incidentEndDate":"2026-08-25","incidentKind":"bounded_series","incidentDatePrecision":"range","exposurePattern":"repeated_interactions","reportedDate":"2026-09-04","aiSystem":"Generative AI (tool not named in inspected accounts)","aiProduct":"Unidentified AI tool","aiCompany":"Unknown","severity":"high","verificationStatus":"verified","harmCategories":[],"harmOutcomes":["professional_harm","legal_harm"],"harmOutcomeSummary":"Career-ending professional consequence for the lawyer who submitted AI-generated false citations in his own disciplinary defence: struck off the Register of Foreign Lawyers on 25 August 2026, with culpability rated 'very high'.","frameworkFacets":[],"causationStatus":"established","participantUsersAffectedMin":1,"otherPeopleHarmedMin":0,"affectedCountStatus":"exact","affectedCountEvidence":"One documented harmed person: Kumar himself, the AI user struck off (SDT judgment). No client or third-party harm is reported in the inspected sources and none is counted.","victimAgeRange":"adult","jurisdiction":"GB","platformType":"other","outcomeType":"regulatory_action","outcomeStatus":"resolved","primarySourceUrl":"https://solicitorstribunal.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/12884-2026-Kumar-.pdf","primarySourceLabel":"Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal judgment, SRA Ltd v Abhishek Kumar, Case No. 12884-2026 (25 Aug 2026)","firstPublishedAt":"2026-09-15T06:18:05.203137+00:00","updatedAt":"2026-09-30T01:17:43.433309+00:00","scopeVersion":"facts-v3","tags":["work","justice","legal-profession","strike-off","fabricated-citations","sdt","own-use","uk"]},{"id":"2026-massachusetts-prosecutors-chatgpt-prompts-family-homicide","caseFacts":{"claims":[{"id":"death","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"Opening account and district attorney’s statement about Tuesday’s deaths.","relation":"supports","source_id":"event"}],"assertion":"WBUR reports two family members killed on 11 August 2026.","causal_attribution":"This source does not establish that AI caused the death."},{"id":"interaction","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"Arraignment account and description of prompts.","relation":"supports","source_id":"report"}],"assertion":"Prosecutors allege that the accused submitted fictional-story prompts concerning family killings.","causal_attribution":"This source does not establish that AI caused the death."},{"id":"response","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"Plea and lawyer response paragraphs.","relation":"supports","source_id":"report"}],"assertion":"NBC reports a not-guilty plea and the defense lawyer’s request to reserve judgment.","causal_attribution":"An accusation and plea do not establish guilt or AI causation."}],"effects":[{"label":"WBUR reports two family members killed on 11 August 2026.","claim_id":"death","direction":"negative"}],"sources":[{"id":"report","url":"https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/teen-accused-killing-mother-brother-help-chatgpt-rcna592308","kind":"court_reporting","access":"read","language":"en","translation_note":"English; no translation. Article body inspected; related-story cards excluded. Covers prosecution assertions, arraignment and defense response.","independence_group":"acton_prosecution"},{"id":"event","url":"https://www.wbur.org/news/2026/08/12/teen-found-acton-deaths-home","kind":"news_report","access":"read","language":"en","translation_note":"English; no translation. Full article body inspected. Event facts derive from the district attorney’s account.","independence_group":"acton_prosecution"}],"version":1,"ai_roles":["others_use"],"contexts":["relationships","justice"],"unknowns":["The complete query history, model responses and independent forensic verification were not inspected.","The inspected reporting shares a prosecution account for the AI assertion.","Guilt and the chatbot’s causal role remain unestablished."],"geography":{"basis":"The reports place the deaths and arraignment in Massachusetts.","court_countries":["US"],"event_countries":["US"],"affected_person_countries":["US"]},"publication":{"basis":"The inspected evidence describes a concrete adverse event and case-specific chatbot interactions. Allegations, source dependence and limits on causal inference remain explicit.","reviewed_on":"2026-10-05"},"ai_involvement":{"basis":"The prosecution connects specific alleged chatbot queries to the case. Missing replies limit claims about model behaviour and causal contribution.","status":"reported"},"person_relations":["communicated_with"]},"metadataReview":{"version":1,"geography":{"basis":"The reports place the deaths and arraignment in Massachusetts.","evidence":[{"kind":"source_body","locator":"The reports place the deaths and arraignment in Massachusetts.","location":"https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/teen-accused-killing-mother-brother-help-chatgpt-rcna592308","supports":["event_countries"],"countries":["US"]},{"kind":"source_body","locator":"The reports place the deaths and arraignment in Massachusetts.","location":"https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/teen-accused-killing-mother-brother-help-chatgpt-rcna592308","supports":["affected_person_countries"],"countries":["US"]},{"kind":"source_body","locator":"The reports place the deaths and arraignment in Massachusetts.","location":"https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/teen-accused-killing-mother-brother-help-chatgpt-rcna592308","supports":["court_countries"],"countries":["US"]}],"court_countries":["US"],"event_countries":["US"],"affected_person_countries":["US"]},"unresolved":[],"reviewed_on":"2026-10-05","source_reviews":[{"url":"https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/teen-accused-killing-mother-brother-help-chatgpt-rcna592308","notes":"English; no translation. Article body inspected; related-story cards excluded. Covers prosecution assertions, arraignment and defense response.","access":"read","language":"en"},{"url":"https://www.wbur.org/news/2026/08/12/teen-found-acton-deaths-home","notes":"English; no translation. Full article body inspected. Event facts derive from the district attorney’s account.","access":"read","language":"en"}]},"name":"Massachusetts prosecutors cite a teenager’s ChatGPT prompts in a family homicide case","summary":"Two family members were killed in Massachusetts on 11 August 2026. Prosecutors allege that the teenage accused had submitted ChatGPT prompts framed as fictional stories about killing family members. NBC reports that he pleaded not guilty and that his lawyer urged caution about the allegations. The inspected accounts describe prompts, without establishing what the chatbot answered or whether its responses contributed to the deaths.","incidentDate":"2026-08-11","incidentKind":"single_event","incidentDatePrecision":"day","exposurePattern":"repeated_interactions","reportedDate":"2026-08-12","aiSystem":"ChatGPT, as identified in the cited account","aiProduct":"ChatGPT (reported)","aiCompany":"OpenAI","severity":"critical","verificationStatus":"credible","harmCategories":[],"harmOutcomes":["death","harm_to_others"],"harmOutcomeSummary":"Two family members were killed in Massachusetts on 11 August 2026. Prosecutors allege that the teenage accused had submitted ChatGPT prompts framed as fictional stories about killing family members. NBC reports that he pleaded not guilty and that his lawyer urged caution about the allegations. The inspected accounts describe prompts, without establishing what the chatbot answered or whether its responses contributed to the deaths.","frameworkFacets":[],"pathwayDirection":"outward","causationStatus":"alleged","participantUsersAffectedMin":0,"otherPeopleHarmedMin":2,"affectedCountStatus":"documented_minimum","affectedCountEvidence":"Counts the two deceased family members. The accused’s detention is not counted as an AI-related harm merely because he used the chatbot.","victimAgeRange":"adult","jurisdiction":"US-MA","platformType":"assistant","outcomeType":"criminal_charges","outcomeStatus":"unknown","primarySourceUrl":"https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/teen-accused-killing-mother-brother-help-chatgpt-rcna592308","primarySourceLabel":"NBC News — 13 August 2026","firstPublishedAt":"2026-08-14T02:52:29.841644+00:00","updatedAt":"2026-10-08T03:11:52.442661+00:00","scopeVersion":"facts-v3","tags":["chatbot"]}]}