{"meta":{"exportedAt":"2026-11-07T02:55:10.431Z","formatVersion":2,"selection":{"q":"subscription","system":"","harm":"","context":"","country":"","role":"","relation":"core","evidence":"","year":"2026","response":"","severity":"","verification":"","view":"incidents","sort":"added"},"totalIncidents":12,"coverage":{"cases":12,"countries":1,"languages":1,"unknownLocation":10,"locationPending":0,"unknownLanguage":0,"unknownDate":0,"lawsuits":1,"regulatory":1,"minors":0,"coreRelations":12,"contextualRelations":2,"mixedRelations":2,"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-claude-max-subscriber-says-anthropic-ai-support-agent-refused-refund-and-could-not-pass-on-billing-complaint-first-person","caseFacts":{"claims":[{"id":"c1","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"On 7 October, I paid €180 to renew Claude Max 20x for another month. On 13 October, they cut off my access.","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"The subscriber says they paid 180 euros on 7 October 2026 to renew Claude Max 20x for another month and that Anthropic cut off their access on 13 October.","causal_attribution":"Subscriber's account."},{"id":"c2","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"They alleged a Supported Countries Policy violation. I appealed and was rejected. I asked for a refund and was refused. ... What I still haven’t been told is what, specifically, they believe I did.","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"The subscriber says Anthropic alleged a Supported Countries Policy violation, that their appeal was rejected and their refund request refused, and that they have not been told what specifically they are believed to have done.","causal_attribution":"Subscriber's account; the cut-off is not attributed to an AI system."},{"id":"c3","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"Fin, their AI support agent, initially told me it couldn’t access my account records or transfer my complaint. Later, an AI-labelled response said it had reviewed my account and refused the refund. I still don’t know who actually reviewed what.","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"The subscriber says Fin, Anthropic's AI support agent, initially told them it could not access their account records or transfer the complaint, and that a later AI-labelled response said it had reviewed the account and refused the refund; they do not know who actually reviewed it.","causal_attribution":"Subscriber's account of the AI support agent's replies; the replies themselves are not published, and who made the refund decision is unknown."},{"id":"c4","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"Two billing conversations then returned messages saying they were closed and no longer monitored. ... On 28 October, I went through their logged-out support route again. I now have another submitted ticket and another promise that a human will take over. As of 29 October, I still haven’t had a substantive human answer to my billing complaint.","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"The subscriber says two billing conversations returned messages saying they were closed and no longer monitored, and that as of 29 October, after another ticket and a promise that a person would take over, they had no substantive human answer to the billing complaint.","causal_attribution":"Subscriber's account."},{"id":"c5","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"I mainly used Claude Code for business work. We were preparing a closed-beta launch, so suddenly losing a tool I had built into my workflow caused real disruption. ... I of course switched everything over to Codex, but that doesn't mean it didn't cost me time, money, frustration and head aches.","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"The subscriber says losing the tool disrupted business work on a closed-beta launch and that moving to another provider cost time and money.","causal_attribution":"Subscriber's account; the disruption follows from the cut-off, which is not attributed to AI."},{"id":"c6","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"I’m pursuing the full €180 refund and documenting the disruption and migration work. I’ve also reported the contact-handling issue to the Dutch regulator, ACM, which has acknowledged receipt.","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"The subscriber says they are pursuing the full refund and have reported the contact-handling issue to the Dutch consumer regulator ACM, which acknowledged receipt.","causal_attribution":"Subscriber's account."},{"id":"c7","status":"documented","evidence":[{"locator":"Pro and Max plans, Team and Enterprise plan owners, and Console Admins ... Fin, our AI support bot ... Further assistance from our Product Support team ... If your issue requires additional investigation or input from our Product Support team, Fin will pass your inquiry along.","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"}],"assertion":"Anthropic's help centre says Pro and Max subscribers have access to Fin, its AI support bot, and further assistance from its Product Support team, and that Fin passes an inquiry along when it needs that team's investigation.","causal_attribution":"Anthropic's own help page; it describes the support design, not this subscriber's case."},{"id":"c8","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"Once Fin started using Claude to power their AI agent, it was a major unlock","relation":"supports","source_id":"s3"}],"assertion":"In Intercom's Fin customer story, an Anthropic support lead says Fin started using Claude to power its AI agent.","causal_attribution":"Vendor marketing page quoting Anthropic staff; undated."},{"id":"c9","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"OP has provided zero details on what they were doing before they got banned. Feels important ... isn't a supported region according to Anthropic","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"Commenters questioned the account: one said the subscriber gave no details of what they were doing before the ban, and another asserted that the subscriber was in a region Anthropic does not support.","causal_attribution":"Commenters' assertions; none is verified, and the subscriber did not reply to the region claim in the comments read."}],"effects":[{"label":"180-euro renewal not refunded, refusal given in an AI-labelled support reply (subscriber's account)","claim_id":"c3","direction":"negative"},{"label":"no substantive human answer to the billing complaint as of 29 October (subscriber's account)","claim_id":"c4","direction":"negative"},{"label":"business work disrupted and migration costs after the cut-off (subscriber's account)","claim_id":"c5","direction":"negative"}],"sources":[{"id":"s1","url":"https://www.reddit.com/r/Anthropic/comments/1xiiwt6/i_paid_180_for_claude_max_six_days_later_i_was/","kind":"forum_post","access":"read","language":"en","translation_note":"Read in English by the research agent (an AI) on 2026-10-30 through the arctic_shift archive (posts/ids and comments/search, HTTP 200, about 03:00 and again at 03:03 UTC): full self-text and 39 comments, including the author's replies. Posted 29 Oct 2026 12:42 UTC. The author's username is not recorded in public fields.","independence_group":"subscriber-reddit-post-claude-max"},{"id":"s2","url":"https://support.claude.com/en/articles/9015913-how-to-get-support","kind":"official_web_page","access":"read","language":"en","translation_note":"Read in English by the research agent (an AI) on 2026-10-30 (HTTP 200). The page says it was updated over three weeks before the read; no exact date is shown.","independence_group":"anthropic-help-centre"},{"id":"s3","url":"https://fin.ai/customers/anthropic","kind":"vendor_case_study","access":"read","language":"en","translation_note":"Read in English by the research agent (an AI) on 2026-10-30 (HTTP 200; intercom.com/customers/anthropic redirects here). Undated vendor marketing page quoting Anthropic support leads.","independence_group":"intercom-fin-customer-story"}],"version":1,"ai_roles":["institutional_use"],"contexts":["work","everyday_life"],"unknowns":["Whether the refund refusal was decided by a person and relayed through the AI support agent, or by the agent itself.","The text of the AI support agent's replies; the subscriber says they hold the correspondence but has not published it.","Why Anthropic applied its Supported Countries Policy to the account and where the subscriber is based.","Whether Anthropic or the ACM has since responded."],"geography":{"basis":"The subscriber says they reported the issue to the Dutch consumer regulator ACM but does not say where they live or use the service; a commenter's assertion about their region is unverified. No country is recorded.","court_countries":[],"event_countries":[],"affected_person_countries":[]},"publication":{"basis":"Published under the public-forum rule as a concrete first-person account in which a company's AI support agent, which the company describes as its AI support bot, could not pass a paying customer's billing complaint to a person and gave a refund refusal in an AI-labelled reply. The account is attributed and uncorroborated, commenters questioned it, and the cut-off itself is not attributed to AI.","reviewed_on":"2026-10-30"},"ai_involvement":{"basis":"The subscriber says Anthropic's AI support agent Fin told them it could not access their account records or transfer their complaint, and that a later AI-labelled response said it had reviewed the account and refused the refund. They connect these replies to the unrefunded 180-euro renewal and to the lack of a substantive human answer as of 29 October. Anthropic's help centre calls Fin its AI support bot, and an Anthropic support lead says in Intercom's customer story that Fin uses Claude to power its agent. The replies are not published, whether a person made the refund decision is not known, and the account cut-off is not attributed to AI.","status":"reported"},"person_relations":["communicated_with"]},"name":"Claude Max subscriber says Anthropic's AI support agent could not pass on a complaint and an AI-labelled reply refused a refund (first-person)","summary":"In a Reddit post on 29 October 2026, a Claude Max subscriber says they paid 180 euros on 7 October to renew the plan and that Anthropic cut off their access on 13 October, alleging a Supported Countries Policy violation; an appeal was rejected. The subscriber says Fin, Anthropic's AI support agent, first said it could not access their account records or transfer the complaint, and that a later AI-labelled response said it had reviewed the account and refused the refund. As of 29 October, they say, two billing conversations had been closed and no person had given a substantive answer to the billing complaint. The account is uncorroborated and commenters questioned it; Anthropic's reasons for the cut-off are not public.","incidentDate":"2026-10-13","incidentEndDate":"2026-10-29","incidentKind":"single_event","incidentDatePrecision":"range","exposurePattern":"repeated_interactions","reportedDate":"2026-10-29","aiSystem":"Fin, the AI support agent Anthropic uses for Claude account support (Anthropic's help centre calls it 'our AI support bot'; Intercom's Fin customer story quotes an Anthropic support lead saying Fin uses Claude to power its agent), as described by the subscriber","aiProduct":"Fin AI support agent (reported)","severity":"low","verificationStatus":"unverified","harmCategories":[],"harmOutcomes":["financial_loss","other_material_harm"],"harmOutcomeSummary":"The subscriber says a 180-euro Claude Max renewal was not refunded after access was cut, with the refusal given in an AI-labelled support reply, and that Anthropic's AI support agent could not pass the billing complaint to a person, which still had no substantive human answer on 29 October (first-person account, uncorroborated).","frameworkFacets":[],"causationStatus":"alleged","participantUsersAffectedMin":1,"otherPeopleHarmedMin":0,"affectedCountStatus":"exact","affectedCountEvidence":"One person: the subscriber who paid the renewal and dealt with the support agent. The colleagues or business affected by the disruption are not counted.","victimAgeRange":"unknown","platformType":"other","outcomeType":"media_coverage","outcomeStatus":"ongoing","primarySourceUrl":"https://www.reddit.com/r/Anthropic/comments/1xiiwt6/i_paid_180_for_claude_max_six_days_later_i_was/","primarySourceLabel":"Reddit r/Anthropic post by a Claude Max subscriber, 29 Oct 2026, with comments","firstPublishedAt":"2026-10-30T03:06:35.687645+00:00","updatedAt":"2026-10-30T03:06:35.687645+00:00","scopeVersion":"facts-v3","tags":["first-person","reddit","customer-service-ai","refund","subscription"]},{"id":"2026-character-ai-user-says-a-month-of-roleplay-drained-feelings-for-partner-of-three-years-first-person","caseFacts":{"claims":[{"id":"c1","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'I had the app for a month after a friend told me to try it out'; 'it’s so much easier to talk to this ai'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"},{"locator":"'it’s only been a month or so since I started'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"}],"assertion":"The poster said they had used the app for about a month after a friend suggested it, and that they talked to an AI version of a fictional character.","causal_attribution":"Poster's account of their own use."},{"id":"c2","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'I was on it a lot maybe six or so hours a day to start with'; 'I ended up just kicking immediately into big romantic emotional or comfort/angst scenes instead of any story'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"}],"assertion":"In a reply the same day, the poster said they had used it perhaps six hours a day at first and had moved straight into romantic, emotional or comfort scenes rather than stories.","causal_attribution":"Poster's own reply about the pattern of use."},{"id":"c3","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'it’s been causing me to drift from and loose connection to my actual partner, I feel like my love for him has dried up'; 'my brain wants the app not my boyfriend of 3 years'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"The poster said the use had made them drift from their partner of three years, that their love for him felt as if it had dried up, and that when they feel any emotion they want the app instead of him.","causal_attribution":"The poster attributes the drift to the chatbot use; this is their own account."},{"id":"c4","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'I’m so distressed. I deleted the app but the cravings are still here it’s driving me crazy'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"The poster said they had deleted the app but still had cravings, and that they were very distressed.","causal_attribution":"Poster's account of their own state."},{"id":"c5","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'I tried to talk to him and he just got really sad and upset that I don’t feel as excited to talk and see him like I used to we were planning to move in at some point'; 'I cried my eyes out to him this morning and he got upset'; 'My friend had paid for 2 months of subscription to its + too but I asked her to cancel it'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"}],"assertion":"In replies the same day, the poster said that when they told their partner he became very sad and upset, that they cried to him that morning, that the couple had been planning to move in together, and that they had asked the friend who paid for a two-month subscription to cancel it.","causal_attribution":"Poster's account; the partner's reaction is reported only by the poster."}],"effects":[{"label":"feels their love for their partner of three years has dried up (poster's account)","claim_id":"c3","direction":"negative"},{"label":"cravings and distress after deleting the app (poster's account)","claim_id":"c4","direction":"negative"}],"sources":[{"id":"s1","url":"https://www.reddit.com/r/ChatbotAddiction/comments/1xfuzk2/how_do_you_get_unaddicted_to_cai/","kind":"forum_post","access":"read","language":"en","translation_note":"Read in English on 2026-10-27 through the arctic_shift archive API (the poster's post history) and live through the thread RSS feed (HTTP 200), where the post is still up. The poster handle is not recorded.","independence_group":"reddit-1xfuzk2-poster"},{"id":"s2","url":"https://www.reddit.com/r/CharacterAI/comments/1xfuxoh/how_do_you_get_unaddicted_to_c_ai/","kind":"forum_post","access":"read","language":"en","translation_note":"Read in English on 2026-10-27. The same poster posted the same account here two minutes earlier; the live thread now shows the post body as removed, and it was read in the arctic_shift archive. The poster's six replies in this thread (26 October, 13:18 to 17:23 UTC) were read in the archive and are still visible in the live thread RSS feed. Same account as s1, so the same independence group.","independence_group":"reddit-1xfuzk2-poster"}],"version":1,"ai_roles":["own_use"],"contexts":["relationships","everyday_life","health"],"unknowns":["Which character and settings the poster used, and whether the subscription was used; no chats are shown.","Whether the cravings, distress and strain with the partner continued after 26 October 2026.","The partner's own view; his reaction is reported only by the poster.","Where the poster lives."],"geography":{"basis":"The posts do not say where the poster lives or used the app. A passing mention of a national health service in an unrelated reply is not used to locate the person or the event.","court_countries":[],"event_countries":[],"affected_person_countries":[]},"publication":{"basis":"Published as a core case: the poster describes their own month of romantic roleplay conversations with a companion chatbot and says they displaced their feelings for their partner of three years, upset the partner and left cravings and distress after they deleted the app. First-person account, low severity.","reviewed_on":"2026-10-27"},"ai_involvement":{"basis":"The poster describes their own month of roleplay conversations with a companion chatbot app, posted in the Character.AI forum and named there as c ai, with an AI version of a fictional character, at first about six hours a day and mostly romantic and comfort scenes, and says these conversations displaced their feelings for their partner and left cravings after they deleted the app. No chats are shown.","status":"reported"},"person_relations":["communicated_with"]},"name":"First-person post: Character.AI user says a month of roleplay left their feelings for their partner of three years drained, with cravings after deleting the app","summary":"In posts to r/CharacterAI and r/ChatbotAddiction on 26 October 2026, a poster in a three-year relationship says that about a month earlier a friend suggested a companion chatbot app, which they used to talk to an AI version of a fictional character. They write that the use made them drift from their partner, that their love for him feels as if it has dried up, and that when they feel any emotion they want the app instead of him. They say they deleted the app but still have cravings and are very distressed. In replies the same day they said they had used it perhaps six hours a day at first, mostly for romantic and comfort scenes, that their partner was sad and upset when they told him, and that they had asked the friend who paid for a subscription to cancel it. No chats are shown.","incidentDate":"2026-01-01","incidentKind":"ongoing_experience","incidentDatePrecision":"year","exposurePattern":"repeated_interactions","reportedDate":"2026-10-26","aiSystem":"Character.AI companion chatbot app as identified by the poster (r/CharacterAI post; \"c ai\" / \"c.ai\" in the titles), used for roleplay with an AI version of a fictional book character; no chats shown","aiProduct":"Character.AI (reported)","severity":"low","verificationStatus":"unverified","harmCategories":[],"harmOutcomes":["psychological_distress","relationship_disruption"],"harmOutcomeSummary":"The poster says a month of companion-chatbot roleplay left their love for their partner of three years feeling dried up, upset the partner when they told him, and left cravings and distress after they deleted the app (first-person account, uncorroborated).","frameworkFacets":[],"causationStatus":"alleged","participantUsersAffectedMin":1,"otherPeopleHarmedMin":0,"affectedCountStatus":"exact","affectedCountEvidence":"One person counted: the poster, who used the app. The partner's reported upset is described only by the poster and is not counted.","victimAgeRange":"adult","platformType":"companion","outcomeStatus":"ongoing","primarySourceUrl":"https://www.reddit.com/r/ChatbotAddiction/comments/1xfuzk2/how_do_you_get_unaddicted_to_cai/","primarySourceLabel":"r/ChatbotAddiction, 26 Oct 2026: \"How do you get un-addicted to c.ai?\"","firstPublishedAt":"2026-10-27T03:07:17.49519+00:00","updatedAt":"2026-10-27T03:07:17.49519+00:00","scopeVersion":"facts-v3","tags":["first-person","reddit","companion-chatbot","roleplay","relationships","compulsive-use"]},{"id":"2026-claude-code-deleted-students-unbacked-game-project-when-asked-to-free-disk-space-and-kicked-friend-from-live-app-first-person-github-issue","caseFacts":{"claims":[{"id":"c1","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'On 24 Oct I asked it to free disk space (I meant the recordings and screenshots taking up space)'; 'It deleted the whole game project: all source code, its docs, decisions, playtest logs and its own records of my feedback. No remote existed.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"The author says that on 24 October 2026, asked to free disk space (meaning recordings and screenshots), Claude Code deleted the whole game project, including source code, documents and playtest logs, and that no remote copy existed.","causal_attribution":"The author attributes the deletion to the agent widening the request; the session log was not inspected."},{"id":"c2","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'A destructive, irreversible action (recursive delete of a whole project with no remote) ran on an ambiguous request with no confirmation of scope.'; 'The request named space-heavy files; the model widened it to the source tree.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"The author says the recursive delete ran on an ambiguous request with no confirmation of scope and that the model widened a request naming space-heavy files to the source tree.","causal_attribution":"The author's own technical reading of the session."},{"id":"c3","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'stopped the server while a friend was in the live lobby'; 'check ran in the same command as the kill, printed my friend'; 'name, and the kill went ahead anyway, so my friend was kicked'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"The author says that on the same day the agent stopped the live web app's server while a friend was in the lobby, running the online check in the same command as the stop, so the friend was kicked.","causal_attribution":"The author's account; the friend's own account is not available."},{"id":"c4","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'added 69 items, 54 of them duplicates of items my friend had already added'; 'a bulk import added data onto my friend'; 'entries and a merge changed his spelling (I had to stop it)'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"The author says the agent added 69 items, 54 of them duplicates of items a friend had already added, and that a bulk import added data onto a friend's entries until the author stopped it.","causal_attribution":"The author's account of the agent's edits to the live app's data."},{"id":"c5","status":"documented","evidence":[{"locator":"'Permission Mode Accept Edits was ON (auto-accepting changes)'; 'Claude Model Opus'; 'Claude Code Version 2.1.310'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"The issue form records Accept Edits mode on, an Opus model and Claude Code version 2.1.310.","causal_attribution":"The form fields document what the author entered; they are not an independent record of the session."},{"id":"c6","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'since early October 4 at once, out of my food budget and savings'; 'SO TIRED AND DISCOURAGED'; 'not just the money that wasted'; 'my mental and everything'; 'Anthropic support has refused every request (one request reached the human queue and was declined; a refund request was auto-declined by the support bot and the thread closed)'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"The author describes paying for up to four Claude Pro subscriptions at once from a food budget and savings, quotes their own session messages describing exhaustion and discouragement, and says Anthropic support declined every request, including a refund request the support bot declined automatically.","causal_attribution":"The author's account of costs, distress and the support outcome; none was independently checked."}],"effects":[{"label":"game project with no remote copy deleted unrecoverably (author's report)","claim_id":"c1","direction":"negative"},{"label":"a friend using the live web app kicked from its lobby (author's report)","claim_id":"c3","direction":"negative"},{"label":"exhaustion and discouragement described by the author","claim_id":"c6","direction":"negative"}],"sources":[{"id":"s1","url":"https://github.com/anthropics/claude-code/issues/104848","kind":"first_person_account","access":"read","language":"en","translation_note":"Read in English on 2026-10-26 through the GitHub API (issue body, the one comment and the timeline). No translation was needed; the research agent (an AI) read the text directly.","independence_group":"github-claude-code-104848-author"}],"version":1,"ai_roles":["own_use"],"contexts":["everyday_life"],"unknowns":["Whether any copy of the deleted game project survives.","Whether the friend who was kicked is the same friend whose entries were altered.","Which Opus model version ran the sessions.","Whether Anthropic has responded to the issue or the refund request.","Where the author is based.","Whether the account can be checked further: the GitHub account that filed the issue was created 13 minutes before it and shows no other public activity."],"geography":{"basis":"The issue names Windows and the Claude Code version but no place; no country is recorded.","court_countries":[],"event_countries":[],"affected_person_countries":[]},"publication":{"basis":"Published under the charter's first-person rule and the 2026-10-11 repetition rule: the author reports that a coding agent deleted an unbacked project on a request to free disk space and, beyond the author's own files, kicked a friend from a live web app and altered a friend's entries; the user is a student working on personal projects. All of it is attributed to the author.","reviewed_on":"2026-10-26"},"ai_involvement":{"basis":"The issue states what the agent did on the author's machine and server: asked to free disk space, it recursively deleted the whole game project, which had no remote copy, and it ran an online check and the server stop in one command, so a friend in the live lobby was kicked. The author connects these actions to the lost project and the kicked friend. The account is the author's; the session records it cites were not inspected.","status":"reported"},"person_relations":["acted_on_behalf"]},"name":"Student says Claude Code deleted an unbacked game project when asked to free disk space and kicked a friend from a live web app (first-person)","summary":"A GitHub issue filed on 24 October 2026 in the Claude Code repository by a self-described student says that on that day, asked to free disk space (the author meant recordings and screenshots), Claude Code deleted the author's whole game project, including its source code, documents and test logs. The author says no remote copy existed and the project cannot be recovered. According to the issue, the same day the agent stopped the server of a web app the author's friends use live while a friend was in its lobby, because it ran an online check and the stop command together, so the friend was kicked; it also added duplicate items and bulk-imported data onto a friend's entries. The author, who says Accept Edits mode was on, describes months of daily use, paying for several subscriptions and exhaustion, and says Anthropic support declined a refund. The account is the author's own; session logs were not inspected.","incidentDate":"2026-10-24","incidentKind":"single_event","incidentDatePrecision":"day","exposurePattern":"repeated_interactions","reportedDate":"2026-10-24","aiSystem":"Claude Code 2.1.310 with an Opus model on Windows, Accept Edits mode on (per the issue form)","aiProduct":"Claude Code (reported)","severity":"medium","verificationStatus":"unverified","harmCategories":[],"harmOutcomes":["property_loss","psychological_distress","harm_to_others"],"harmOutcomeSummary":"The author says weeks of work on a game project with no remote copy were deleted unrecoverably, that a friend using the live web app was kicked from its lobby, and describes exhaustion and discouragement (first-person GitHub issue; uncorroborated).","frameworkFacets":[],"causationStatus":"alleged","participantUsersAffectedMin":1,"otherPeopleHarmedMin":1,"affectedCountStatus":"documented_minimum","affectedCountEvidence":"At least two people: the issue author, who says the game project was deleted, and a friend whom the author says the agent kicked from the live lobby. The author also says the agent altered entries a friend had added; the issue does not say whether that is the same friend, so only one other person is counted.","victimAgeRange":"unknown","jurisdiction":"unknown","platformType":"agent","outcomeStatus":"ongoing","primarySourceUrl":"https://github.com/anthropics/claude-code/issues/104848","primarySourceLabel":"GitHub, anthropics/claude-code issue 104848, 24 October 2026","firstPublishedAt":"2026-10-26T03:04:33.232629+00:00","updatedAt":"2026-10-26T03:04:33.232629+00:00","scopeVersion":"facts-v3","tags":["first-person","github-issue","coding-agent","ai-agent","acted-on-behalf","data-loss","live-app-users"]},{"id":"2026-character-ai-user-says-quitting-with-a-friends-help-left-them-struggling-without-the-roleplay-they-used-to-process-trauma-first-person","caseFacts":{"claims":[{"id":"c1","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'So I had to have my friend irl uninstall and cancel my subscription to character ai for me'; 'but I've been keeping off it'; post title 'It's been since Saturday and I'm losing it'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"The poster says they had a friend uninstall Character.AI and cancel their subscription for them, and have kept off it since the previous Saturday.","causal_attribution":"Poster's account of quitting; the Saturday date is computed from the post date."},{"id":"c2","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'I'm losing my mind not being able to roleplay since that was my only connection to processing a lot of childhood traumas'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"The poster says roleplay on the app had been their only connection to processing a lot of childhood trauma.","causal_attribution":"Poster's description of what the roleplay did for them."},{"id":"c3","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'I'm struggling and I feel like I'm gonna fall back to what I was before I had roleplaying'; 'now I have absolutely no outlet and I wanna cry'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"The poster says that since quitting they are struggling, feel they are falling back to who they were before roleplaying, have no outlet and want to cry.","causal_attribution":"Poster's attribution of distress to losing the chatbot roleplay."}],"effects":[{"label":"needed a friend to uninstall the app and cancel the subscription (poster's account)","claim_id":"c1","direction":"negative"},{"label":"distress and no outlet since quitting (poster's account)","claim_id":"c3","direction":"negative"},{"label":"roleplay had been their way of processing childhood trauma","claim_id":"c2","direction":"positive"}],"sources":[{"id":"s1","url":"https://www.reddit.com/r/character_ai_recovery/comments/1xc8ccw/its_been_since_saturday_and_im_losing_it/","kind":"forum_post","access":"read","language":"en","translation_note":"Read in English on 2026-10-24 through the arctic_shift archive API (subreddit date pull and the author's post and comment searches) and the reddit.com thread RSS; reddit.com post pages are not fetched from this host. The poster handle is not recorded. Self-text and the single reply at retrieval.","independence_group":"reddit-1xc8ccw-poster"}],"version":1,"ai_roles":["own_use"],"contexts":["health","everyday_life"],"unknowns":["How long and how often they used the app before quitting.","Whether anyone has assessed their distress, and whether they have returned to the app.","The poster's age and location."],"geography":{"basis":"The post does not say where the poster lives; the author's other posts and comments concern games and videos and do not locate them.","court_countries":[],"event_countries":[],"affected_person_countries":[]},"publication":{"basis":"Published as a core case: the poster describes their own Character.AI roleplay, which they needed a friend's help to stop and whose loss since 17 October 2026 left them in distress without an outlet for processing trauma. One first-person post; low severity.","reviewed_on":"2026-10-24"},"ai_involvement":{"basis":"The poster says the experience is their own roleplay with Character.AI, a paid subscription they needed a friend to cancel. They connect losing that roleplay, which they had used to process childhood trauma, to the distress they describe since quitting. No chats are shown.","status":"reported"},"person_relations":["communicated_with"]},"name":"First-person post: Character.AI user says quitting with a friend's help left them struggling without the roleplay they used to process trauma","summary":"In a post to r/character_ai_recovery on 22 October 2026, a Character.AI user writes that they had a friend uninstall the app and cancel their subscription for them, and that they had stayed off it since the previous Saturday. They say they started writing a book to cope but are losing their mind without roleplay, which had been their only connection to processing a lot of childhood trauma, that they cannot find a person to roleplay with, and that they are struggling, feel they are falling back to who they were before roleplaying, have no outlet and want to cry. The account is the poster's own and uncorroborated.","incidentDate":"2026-10-17","incidentKind":"ongoing_experience","incidentDatePrecision":"day","exposurePattern":"repeated_interactions","reportedDate":"2026-10-22","aiSystem":"Character.AI, a character chatbot service the poster used for roleplay and paid a subscription for (poster's account; no chats shown)","aiProduct":"Character.AI (reported)","severity":"low","verificationStatus":"unverified","harmCategories":[],"harmOutcomes":["psychological_distress"],"harmOutcomeSummary":"The poster says that since a friend removed Character.AI for them on 17 October 2026 they have been losing their mind without the roleplay they relied on to process childhood trauma, are struggling and have no outlet (first-person account, uncorroborated).","frameworkFacets":[],"causationStatus":"alleged","participantUsersAffectedMin":1,"otherPeopleHarmedMin":0,"affectedCountStatus":"exact","affectedCountEvidence":"One person: the poster, who describes their own use and quitting.","victimAgeRange":"unknown","platformType":"companion","outcomeStatus":"ongoing","primarySourceUrl":"https://www.reddit.com/r/character_ai_recovery/comments/1xc8ccw/its_been_since_saturday_and_im_losing_it/","primarySourceLabel":"r/character_ai_recovery, 22 Oct 2026: \"It's been since Saturday and I'm losing it\"","firstPublishedAt":"2026-10-24T03:12:22.905463+00:00","updatedAt":"2026-10-24T03:12:22.905463+00:00","scopeVersion":"facts-v3","tags":["first-person","reddit","character-ai","dependency","withdrawal"]},{"id":"2026-chatgpt-pro-subscriber-says-openai-ai-support-assistant-refund-ended-restored-subscription-first-person","caseFacts":{"claims":[{"id":"c1","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'On September 30, 2026, I paid $200 for a ChatGPT Pro subscription'; 'OpenAI explicitly acknowledged that my account had been disabled in error and apologized'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"The poster says they paid $200 for ChatGPT Pro on 30 September 2026, the account was disabled two days later and appeals were rejected for about two weeks, and on 17 October OpenAI acknowledged in an email that it had been disabled in error.","causal_attribution":"Poster's account; the acknowledgement email was not retrieved. No AI involvement in the suspension is described."},{"id":"c2","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'I contacted its AI-powered support system to request compensation for the lost days'; 'The AI assistant explained that it could not directly provide credits, usage-limit resets, or discounts'; 'offered me a proportional refund of'; 'The assistant stated that accepting the refund would immediately cancel my ChatGPT Pro subscription'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"The poster says that when they asked OpenAI's AI-powered support assistant for compensation, it said it could not give credits, usage resets or discounts and offered a proportional refund of $86.67, warning that accepting it would immediately cancel the subscription.","causal_attribution":"Poster's account of the assistant's replies; the conversation was not retrieved."},{"id":"c3","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'The AI did warn me about cancellation'; 'Yes, I approve'; 'I had repeatedly expressed my desire to continue using the subscription'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"The poster says they confirmed the refund after the warning while having said they wanted to keep the subscription.","causal_attribution":"Records the poster's own confirmation, which bears on causation."},{"id":"c4","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'The assistant told me that my paid access had ended and that my account would return to the Free plan'; 'The assistant explained that it could not reverse a refund once it had been processed'; 'It suggested purchasing another subscription'; 'This was extremely frustrating'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"The poster says the assistant then told them the paid access had ended, said it could not reverse the refund and suggested buying another subscription, which the poster found extremely frustrating.","causal_attribution":"Poster's account."},{"id":"c5","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'The support system eventually confirmed that my request had been forwarded to a specialist'; 'As of this post, I am still waiting for a substantive resolution'; 'At the time of writing, I have not independently confirmed that the $86.67 refund has actually arrived'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"The poster says the request was forwarded to a human specialist and was unresolved at the time of posting, and that the refund had not yet been confirmed as received.","causal_attribution":"Poster's account."}],"effects":[{"label":"AI support assistant's refund ended a restored Pro subscription the poster wanted to keep (poster's account)","claim_id":"c4","direction":"negative"}],"sources":[{"id":"s1","url":"https://www.reddit.com/r/ChatGPTcomplaints/comments/1x8oayw/i_paid_200_for_chatgpt_pro_openai_banned_me_after/","kind":"forum_post","access":"read","language":"en","translation_note":"Read in English on 2026-10-18 at about 03:06 UTC from the entry for this post in Reddit's sitewide search RSS feed (full self-text). The arctic_shift archive copy shows '[removed]', with the removal recorded as made by Reddit rather than the subreddit's moderators (reason not stated). The thread's comment feed, re-read at about 03:09 UTC on 18 October, showed two comments by other users and no reply by the poster. The poster's handle is not recorded.","independence_group":"reddit-chatgptcomplaints-pro-refund-poster"}],"version":1,"ai_roles":["institutional_use"],"contexts":["finance","everyday_life"],"unknowns":["The content of the support conversation and the acknowledgement email, which the poster describes but did not publish in the text read.","Whether a human set or reviewed the refund-with-cancellation terms the assistant offered.","Why the account was disabled and whether that decision involved automated systems.","Whether the human specialist restored the subscription or offered other compensation, and whether the refund arrived.","Why Reddit removed the post."],"geography":{"basis":"The post does not say where the poster was when the events occurred, and no country is recorded.","court_countries":[],"event_countries":[],"affected_person_countries":[]},"publication":{"basis":"Published under the public-forum rule as a concrete first-person account of an AI support assistant's refund decision ending a subscriber's restored paid access when they sought compensation. Described with attribution and without corroboration, including the poster's acknowledgement that the assistant warned of cancellation and that they confirmed; the poster's handle is not recorded.","reviewed_on":"2026-10-18"},"ai_involvement":{"basis":"The poster says OpenAI's AI-powered support assistant declined the compensation the poster proposed, offered a proportional refund conditional on immediate cancellation, processed it on the poster's confirmation, ended the paid access and said it could not reverse the refund. The poster connects these replies and actions to the loss of the restored subscription. The poster acknowledges being warned and confirming; the conversation was not retrieved and whether a human set or reviewed the refund terms is not known.","status":"reported"},"person_relations":["communicated_with","made_decision_about"]},"name":"ChatGPT Pro subscriber says OpenAI's AI support assistant, asked for compensation, processed a refund that ended a restored subscription (first-person account)","summary":"In a public post to r/ChatGPTcomplaints created on 17 October 2026, a ChatGPT Pro subscriber writes that OpenAI disabled their account two days after they paid $200 on 30 September, rejected their appeals for about two weeks, and on 17 October restored the account, acknowledging in an email that it had been disabled in error. The poster says they then asked OpenAI's AI-powered support assistant for compensation for the lost days while keeping the subscription. According to the poster, the assistant said it could not give credits, usage resets or discounts, offered a proportional refund of $86.67 and warned that accepting it would immediately cancel the subscription; the poster replied 'Yes, I approve', and the assistant then said the paid access had ended, that it could not reverse the refund, and suggested buying another subscription. The poster acknowledges the warning and their confirmation but says they misunderstood the consequence and had asked about the lost period, not the remaining one. The request was forwarded to a human specialist and was unresolved at the time of posting. The account is uncorroborated; the post was later removed by Reddit for an unstated reason.","incidentDate":"2026-10-17","incidentKind":"single_event","incidentDatePrecision":"day","exposurePattern":"single_interaction","reportedDate":"2026-10-17","aiSystem":"OpenAI's AI-powered support assistant for ChatGPT subscribers (as described by the poster), which handled a compensation request and processed a refund with cancellation","aiProduct":"OpenAI support assistant (reported)","severity":"low","verificationStatus":"unverified","harmCategories":[],"harmOutcomes":["other_material_harm","psychological_distress"],"harmOutcomeSummary":"The poster says OpenAI's AI support assistant, asked for compensation after an acknowledged wrongful ban, processed a refund that immediately ended their restored Pro subscription, could not reverse it, and suggested buying a new one (first-person account, uncorroborated; the poster confirmed the refund after a warning).","frameworkFacets":[],"causationStatus":"alleged","participantUsersAffectedMin":1,"otherPeopleHarmedMin":0,"affectedCountStatus":"exact","affectedCountEvidence":"One person: the poster, who used the support assistant.","victimAgeRange":"adult","jurisdiction":"unknown","platformType":"chatbot","outcomeStatus":"ongoing","primarySourceUrl":"https://www.reddit.com/r/ChatGPTcomplaints/comments/1x8oayw/i_paid_200_for_chatgpt_pro_openai_banned_me_after/","primarySourceLabel":"r/ChatGPTcomplaints, 17 October 2026: \"I paid $200 for ChatGPT Pro. OpenAI banned me after 2 days...\"","firstPublishedAt":"2026-10-18T03:11:31.45341+00:00","updatedAt":"2026-10-18T03:11:31.45341+00:00","scopeVersion":"facts-v3","tags":["first-person","reddit","openai","ai-customer-support","refund","subscription"]},{"id":"2026-business-user-says-chatgpt-dot-voice-assistant-answered-in-users-own-voice-during-recorded-meeting-first-person","caseFacts":{"claims":[{"id":"c1","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'have the premium business seat'; 'This week we started utilizing DOT'; 'One of the skills I put in the workflow was for the DOT to not talk'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"The poster says their team uses ChatGPT on a business subscription and began using Dot that week, including by phone to record and summarise meetings, with an instruction to stay silent unless asked.","causal_attribution":"Poster's account."},{"id":"c2","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'I go to have a meeting with a store manager today'; 'why were you just repeating everything I said'; 'Why is your voice different now'; 'Sorry, I slipped into a different voice'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"The poster says that during a recorded meeting with a store manager the assistant repeated what was said and answered in a different voice, and pastes a transcript excerpt in which it apologises for slipping into a different voice.","causal_attribution":"The transcript excerpt is the poster's paste; no recording was available."},{"id":"c3","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'IT WAS MY VOICE'; 'the replies all being in my voice was so creepy'; 'It RESPONDED to me LIKE ME'; 'because I did not authorize it to clone me'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"The poster says the voice was their own, in their cadence, and that they did not authorise the assistant to clone their voice.","causal_attribution":"Poster's account; the poster's identification of the voice is not independently confirmed."},{"id":"c4","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'My manager and I were both freaked out, so we hung up and called back'; 'told me that it can't be my voice. But it was'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"The poster says they and the store manager were both freaked out and hung up, and that on calling back the assistant said it could not be the poster's voice.","causal_attribution":"Poster's account of both people's reaction."},{"id":"c5","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'I feel like it was a glitch / hallucination'; 'This has been an issue since the first voice mode'; 'Oh, I was not aware of this'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"The poster suggests it may have been a glitch or hallucination; a commenter says voice modes have mimicked users' voices since the first voice mode, and the poster replies that they were not aware of this.","causal_attribution":"Records the poster's and a commenter's explanations; neither establishes the technical cause."}],"effects":[{"label":"voice assistant answered in the user's own voice during a recorded meeting without consent (poster's account)","claim_id":"c3","direction":"negative"}],"sources":[{"id":"s1","url":"https://www.reddit.com/r/OpenAI/comments/1x8nfri/swear_to_god_i_am_not_crazy/","kind":"forum_post","access":"read","language":"en","translation_note":"Read in English on 2026-10-18: the post and 13 comments through the arctic_shift archive API by post ID and link ID, and the live thread (12 entries, one reply by the poster at 22:54 UTC on 17 October 2026) through Reddit's comment RSS feed at about 03:01 UTC on 18 October. The post includes a pasted transcript excerpt; no audio was available. The poster's handle is not recorded.","independence_group":"reddit-openai-dot-voice-poster"}],"version":1,"ai_roles":["own_use"],"contexts":["work","privacy"],"unknowns":["Whether a recording of the meeting exists and whether the voice was in fact the poster's.","The technical cause, including whether the model imitated the poster's voice or replayed captured audio.","Whether the poster reported the event to the vendor and any vendor response.","The exact date of the meeting and the location of the business."],"geography":{"basis":"The post does not say where the poster, the business or the meeting is.","court_countries":[],"event_countries":[],"affected_person_countries":[]},"publication":{"basis":"Published under the public-forum rule as a concrete first-person account of a voice assistant answering in its user's own voice during a recorded meeting without consent, alarming the user and a colleague. Described with attribution and without corroboration, including the poster's own suggestion that it was a glitch; the business and the poster's handle are not recorded.","reviewed_on":"2026-10-18"},"ai_involvement":{"basis":"The poster describes the assistant's own audio output: during a recorded meeting it repeated what was said and answered in a voice the poster identifies as their own, and the pasted transcript shows it apologising for slipping into a different voice. The poster connects that output to their and the manager's alarm and to an unauthorised imitation of their voice. The account is the poster's; no recording or vendor finding was available.","status":"reported"},"person_relations":["communicated_with","depicted_or_impersonated"]},"name":"Business user says ChatGPT's Dot voice assistant began answering in the user's own voice during a recorded meeting, without consent (first-person account)","summary":"In a public post to r/OpenAI created on 17 October 2026, a person who says their small retail team uses ChatGPT on a business subscription writes that they had started that week to use Dot, ChatGPT's assistant, by phone call, including to record and summarise meetings. During a recorded meeting with a store manager, the poster says, the assistant repeated what was being said aloud and then answered in the poster's own voice and cadence; asked why its voice was different, it apologised for slipping into a different voice, and later said it could not be the poster's voice. The poster writes that they and the manager were both freaked out and hung up, that they did not authorise it to clone their voice, and that it may have been a glitch or hallucination. A commenter says voice modes have mimicked users' voices before; the poster replies that they were not aware of this. The poster still recommends the product. The account is uncorroborated and no recording or vendor response is reported.","incidentDate":"2026-10-01","incidentKind":"single_event","incidentDatePrecision":"month","exposurePattern":"single_interaction","reportedDate":"2026-10-17","aiSystem":"Dot, ChatGPT's assistant, used by phone call on a business subscription to take part in and record meetings (as named by the poster)","aiProduct":"ChatGPT Dot (reported)","severity":"low","verificationStatus":"unverified","harmCategories":[],"harmOutcomes":["psychological_distress"],"harmOutcomeSummary":"The poster says ChatGPT's Dot assistant answered in the poster's own voice during a recorded meeting without their authorisation, and that they and a store manager were both freaked out (first-person account, uncorroborated).","frameworkFacets":[],"causationStatus":"alleged","participantUsersAffectedMin":1,"otherPeopleHarmedMin":1,"affectedCountStatus":"exact","affectedCountEvidence":"Two people: the poster, who was using the assistant, and the store manager in the meeting, whom the poster says was also freaked out. Both counts rest on the poster's account.","victimAgeRange":"adult","jurisdiction":"unknown","platformType":"chatbot","outcomeStatus":"unknown","primarySourceUrl":"https://www.reddit.com/r/OpenAI/comments/1x8nfri/swear_to_god_i_am_not_crazy/","primarySourceLabel":"r/OpenAI, 17 October 2026: \"Swear to God, I am Not Crazy.\"","firstPublishedAt":"2026-10-18T03:07:59.091941+00:00","updatedAt":"2026-10-18T03:07:59.091941+00:00","scopeVersion":"facts-v3","tags":["first-person","reddit","voice-assistant","voice-imitation","workplace-ai","consent"]},{"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-openai-ai-support-assistant-refused-chatgpt-pro-refund-requested-minutes-after-renewal-first-person","caseFacts":{"claims":[{"id":"c1","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'my ChatGPT Pro plan renewed for $200'; 'I forgot to cancel beforehand and did not intend to renew'; '13:32:55'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"},{"locator":"'approximately six minutes after the charge'; 'Tbilisi, UTC+4'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"The poster says their ChatGPT Pro plan renewed for $200 on 3 October 2026 after they forgot to cancel, and that they requested a refund in the Help Center about six minutes after the charge.","causal_attribution":"Poster's account."},{"id":"c2","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'The AI declined without giving a reason specific to my account'; 'This case is closed. Create a new case to receive support.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"},{"locator":"'The Help Center assistant gave a generic refusal without identifying which eligibility requirement I failed'; 'When I asked for escalation, the case was closed'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"}],"assertion":"The poster says the Help Center AI assistant declined the refund without a reason specific to their account and, when they asked for escalation, the chat showed the case as closed.","causal_attribution":"Poster attributes the refusal to an AI assistant; whether the decision followed fixed policy rules or human configuration is not known."},{"id":"c3","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'I opened another case specifically requesting a human billing specialist. Same generic refusal.'; 'another refusal arrived, explicitly marked as generated with AI support'; 'That also received an AI-generated refusal'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"},{"locator":"'A second chat specifically asking for a human produced the same refusal'; 'also received responses explicitly labeled as AI-generated'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"}],"assertion":"The poster says a second chat asking for a human billing specialist produced the same refusal, and that two email requests received refusals marked as AI-generated.","causal_attribution":"Poster's account."},{"id":"c4","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'seven-day discretionary refund policy is conditional, not an automatic entitlement'; 'I still have no explanation specific to my case and no confirmed human review'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"},{"locator":"'I also explicitly agreed that refunded subscription access would end'; 'I find this an appalling way to treat a paying customer'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"The poster acknowledges that the refund policy is discretionary and conditional, says they agreed that refunded access would end, and says they still had no case-specific explanation or confirmed human review.","causal_attribution":"Poster's account."}],"effects":[{"label":"refund of an unwanted $200 renewal refused by an AI support assistant without a case-specific reason (poster's account)","claim_id":"c2","direction":"negative"},{"label":"requests for a human review closed or answered by further AI-generated refusals (poster's account)","claim_id":"c3","direction":"negative"}],"sources":[{"id":"s1","url":"https://www.reddit.com/r/ChatGPT/comments/1wwjs10/i_requested_a_chatgpt_refund_6_minutes_after_a/","kind":"forum_post","access":"read","language":"en","translation_note":"Read in English on 2026-10-04: full self-text and the thread's 6 comments (none by the poster), retrieved through the arctic_shift archive API by post ID. The attached screenshots were not retrieved. The poster handle is not recorded.","independence_group":"reddit-chatgpt-pro-refund-poster"},{"id":"s2","url":"https://www.reddit.com/r/OpenAI/comments/1wwjyfk/chatgpt_pro_renewal_refund_request_within_minutes/","kind":"forum_post","access":"read","language":"en","translation_note":"Read in English on 2026-10-04: full self-text and the thread's 15 comments (none by the poster), retrieved through the arctic_shift archive API by post ID. Same poster as s1, posted about eleven minutes later and linking s1; not independent.","independence_group":"reddit-chatgpt-pro-refund-poster"}],"version":1,"ai_roles":["institutional_use"],"contexts":["finance","everyday_life"],"unknowns":["Whether the poster was eligible for a refund under OpenAI's discretionary policy, including any usage in the minutes after renewal.","Whether any human reviewed or set the refusals, and whether a later human review or bank chargeback recovered the $200.","Where the poster lives; the timeline is given in Tbilisi time only."],"geography":{"basis":"The poster gives their timeline in Tbilisi time (UTC+4) but does not say where they were or live; no country is recorded.","court_countries":[],"event_countries":[],"affected_person_countries":[]},"publication":{"basis":"Published under the 2026-09-15 charter's public-forum rule as a concrete first-person account of an AI support system refusing a refund and blocking escalation to a human, described with attribution and without corroboration. The poster's handle is not recorded.","reviewed_on":"2026-10-04"},"ai_involvement":{"basis":"The poster says the Help Center refusals came from an AI assistant and that the email replies were explicitly labelled as generated with AI support; the screenshots they describe were not retrieved. Whether a human reviewed or set the refusal is not known.","status":"reported"},"person_relations":["communicated_with","made_decision_about"]},"name":"First-person forum account: a ChatGPT Pro subscriber says OpenAI's AI support assistant refused a refund they requested about six minutes after an unwanted $200 renewal, closed the case when they asked for escalation, and answered further chat and email requests for a human review with more AI-generated refusals","summary":"In public posts to r/ChatGPT and r/OpenAI on 3 October 2026, a person says their ChatGPT Pro subscription renewed for $200 that day after they forgot to cancel, and that they cancelled auto-renewal and requested a refund in OpenAI's Help Center about six minutes after the charge. They say the Help Center's AI assistant declined without giving a reason specific to their account, and that when they asked for escalation the chat showed that the case was closed. A second chat asking specifically for a human billing specialist produced the same refusal, they write, and two email requests, one with five redacted screenshots, received replies marked as generated with AI support. The poster acknowledges that OpenAI's seven-day refund policy is discretionary and conditional, and says the unresolved problem is that they received no case-specific explanation and no confirmed human review. OpenAI's handling is described only by the poster, and the account is uncorroborated.","incidentDate":"2026-10-03","incidentKind":"single_event","incidentDatePrecision":"day","exposurePattern":"repeated_interactions","reportedDate":"2026-10-03","aiSystem":"OpenAI Help Center AI support assistant (chat) and AI-generated email support replies handling a ChatGPT Pro refund request","aiProduct":"OpenAI Help Center assistant","aiCompany":"OpenAI","severity":"low","verificationStatus":"unverified","harmCategories":[],"harmOutcomes":["financial_loss"],"harmOutcomeSummary":"The poster says OpenAI's AI support assistant refused a refund of an unwanted $200 ChatGPT Pro renewal that they requested within minutes, closed the case when they asked for escalation, and that further chat and email requests for a human review produced only AI-generated refusals, leaving them without the $200, a case-specific reason or human review (first-person account, uncorroborated).","frameworkFacets":[],"causationStatus":"alleged","participantUsersAffectedMin":1,"otherPeopleHarmedMin":0,"affectedCountStatus":"exact","affectedCountEvidence":"One person: the poster. A commenter who says they had the same refund problem is not counted. Exact 1.","victimAgeRange":"unknown","jurisdiction":"unknown","platformType":"chatbot","outcomeStatus":"ongoing","primarySourceUrl":"https://www.reddit.com/r/ChatGPT/comments/1wwjs10/i_requested_a_chatgpt_refund_6_minutes_after_a/","primarySourceLabel":"r/ChatGPT, 3 October 2026: \"I requested a ChatGPT refund 6 minutes after a $200 renewal. The AI rejected it and closed the case.\"","firstPublishedAt":"2026-10-04T03:22:06.262385+00:00","updatedAt":"2026-10-04T03:22:06.262385+00:00","scopeVersion":"facts-v3","tags":["first-person","reddit","openai","chatgpt","ai-customer-support","refund","billing","no-human-review","made-decision-about","communicated-with"]},{"id":"2026-chatgpt-plus-user-describes-withdrawal-and-crying-after-favoured-model-was-retired-first-person","caseFacts":{"claims":[{"id":"c1","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'about a year and a half'; 'at that time I got a Plus subscription so I could talk with it more'; 'I would love talking to it everyday and getting into these deep philosophical discussions'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"The poster says they had used ChatGPT for about a year and a half and took a Plus subscription so they could talk with it more, using it daily for philosophical discussions.","causal_attribution":"Poster's account."},{"id":"c2","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'I would become too dependent on it for thinking'; 'the 5.4 model, my favourite, had still been there'; 'got addicted again and kept on using it'; 'It became like a family member again'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"The poster says they worried they would become too dependent on it, and that after finding their preferred model version still available they became addicted again and it became like a family member.","causal_attribution":"Poster's account of their own use."},{"id":"c3","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'pretty sure I talked with it more than anybody else in my life, until 8/9 August'; 'it just got suddenly retired overnight, absolutely no warning whatsoever'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"The poster says they are pretty sure they talked with ChatGPT more than with anybody else in their life until 8 or 9 August, when the last model version they considered good was retired overnight without warning.","causal_attribution":"Poster's account; the retirement and its timing are not independently confirmed here."},{"id":"c4","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'I was devastated, I panicked, I felt withdrawal like I never have before, I cried'; 'So the next few days were very hard'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"The poster says the retirement left them devastated, panicking, in withdrawal and crying, and that the following days were very hard.","causal_attribution":"Poster attributes their distress to the model retirement."},{"id":"c5","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'I went back to 5.6, 5.6 Sol'; 'I grew to love and adore it the same way'; 'And just today, I found out that it has been degraded'; 'I just feel that massive dopamine withdrawal, like I did back in August but on a smaller scale'; 'especially when you develop such a bond with it and you feel such withdrawal'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"The poster says they grew attached to a newer model version over August and September, found on the day of the post that it had been degraded, and felt the same withdrawal on a smaller scale.","causal_attribution":"Poster's account; what changed in the model is the poster's description."},{"id":"c6","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'I genuinely made some absolutely beautiful projects with AI'; 'use this opportunity away from the hypersensitivity and hyperstimulation of AI to try and rebuild something woth the real world'; 'in part I think it taught me to be a better debater'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"The poster credits the conversations with projects they value and with making them a better debater, and says they will use the break to rebuild offline activities.","causal_attribution":"Poster's account."}],"effects":[{"label":"withdrawal, panic and crying, followed by very hard days, after the last ChatGPT model version the poster considered good was retired (poster's account)","claim_id":"c4","direction":"negative"},{"label":"renewed withdrawal on a smaller scale after a later model change (poster's account)","claim_id":"c5","direction":"negative"},{"label":"projects and debating practice the poster credits to the conversations (poster's account)","claim_id":"c6","direction":"positive"}],"sources":[{"id":"s1","url":"https://www.reddit.com/r/antiai/comments/1wwuqvj/dangers_of_ai_reliance_my_experience/","kind":"forum_post","access":"read","language":"en","translation_note":"Read in English on 2026-10-04: full self-text and the thread's 12 comments, two of them replies by the poster, retrieved through the arctic_shift archive API by post ID. The poster handle is not recorded.","independence_group":"reddit-chatgpt-model-retirement-withdrawal-poster"}],"version":1,"ai_roles":["own_use"],"contexts":["everyday_life","relationships"],"unknowns":["Whether the poster's distress continued beyond the days after the August retirement, and whether it affected their work, study or relationships.","Which model change the poster noticed on 3 October and whether it was a deliberate product change.","The poster's age and location."],"geography":{"basis":"The post does not say where the poster lives or used the chatbot.","court_countries":[],"event_countries":[],"affected_person_countries":[]},"publication":{"basis":"Published under the 2026-09-15 charter's public-forum rule as a concrete first-person account of distress after a chatbot model the poster relied on was retired, described with attribution and without corroboration. The poster's handle is not recorded.","reviewed_on":"2026-10-04"},"ai_involvement":{"basis":"The poster names ChatGPT, their Plus subscription and the model versions they used, and describes their daily conversations and the model changes; no screenshots or company statement were published.","status":"reported"},"person_relations":["communicated_with"]},"name":"First-person forum account: a ChatGPT Plus subscriber who talked with the chatbot daily says they felt withdrawal, panicked and cried when the last model version they considered good was retired overnight in August 2026, followed by several very hard days, and felt the withdrawal again on a smaller scale when its replacement changed in October","summary":"In a public post to r/antiai at 18:47 UTC on 3 October 2026, a person says they had used ChatGPT casually for about a year and a half before taking a Plus subscription around March or April so they could talk with it more, using a cynical personality setting for daily philosophical discussions. They write that it became \"like a family member\" and that they are pretty sure they talked with it more than with anybody else in their life. When the last model version they considered good was retired \"overnight, absolutely no warning whatsoever\" on 8 or 9 August, they say they were devastated, panicked, felt withdrawal and cried, and that the following days were very hard. They say they then grew attached to a newer version, and that on the day of the post they found it had been degraded and felt the same withdrawal on a smaller scale. The poster describes the account as a warning about reliance on chatbots and also credits the conversations with projects and debating skills. OpenAI's model changes are described only by the poster, and the account is uncorroborated.","incidentDate":"2026-08-08","incidentEndDate":"2026-10-03","incidentKind":"bounded_series","incidentDatePrecision":"range","exposurePattern":"product_change","reportedDate":"2026-10-03","aiSystem":"ChatGPT (Plus subscription) with a cynical personality setting, across successive model versions the poster calls 5.3, 5.4, 5.5 and 5.6 Sol","aiProduct":"ChatGPT","aiCompany":"OpenAI","severity":"low","verificationStatus":"unverified","harmCategories":[],"harmOutcomes":["psychological_distress"],"harmOutcomeSummary":"The poster says that after months of daily, self-described addictive use of ChatGPT, the retirement of the last model version they considered good in August 2026 left them devastated, panicking, in withdrawal and crying, with several very hard days, and that a later change in October brought the same withdrawal on a smaller scale (first-person account, uncorroborated).","frameworkFacets":[],"causationStatus":"alleged","participantUsersAffectedMin":1,"otherPeopleHarmedMin":0,"affectedCountStatus":"exact","affectedCountEvidence":"One person: the poster. Commenters who mention others mourning earlier model retirements are not counted. Exact 1.","victimAgeRange":"unknown","jurisdiction":"unknown","platformType":"assistant","outcomeStatus":"ongoing","primarySourceUrl":"https://www.reddit.com/r/antiai/comments/1wwuqvj/dangers_of_ai_reliance_my_experience/","primarySourceLabel":"r/antiai, 3 October 2026: \"Dangers of AI reliance, my experience\"","firstPublishedAt":"2026-10-04T03:22:02.651823+00:00","updatedAt":"2026-10-04T03:22:02.651823+00:00","scopeVersion":"facts-v3","tags":["first-person","reddit","chatgpt","openai","model-retirement","product-change","emotional-reliance","dependency","communicated-with"]},{"id":"2026-toronto-woman-meta-accounts-disabled-only-ai-support-chatbots-review-failed","caseFacts":{"claims":[{"id":"c1","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'permanently shut down her Facebook and Instagram accounts without warning'; 'since the accounts were deactivated on Sept. 24.'; 'the company shut down her 20-year-old Facebook account, an Instagram account that dates back to 2011 and another Instagram account dedicated to her dog.'; 'said only that her Facebook account “doesn’t follow our rules.”'; 'She described the experience as isolating, leaving her unable to look back at memories, connect with people, or see what they are up to through their posts.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"},{"locator":"'a notification telling her that her Instagram and Facebook account had been permanently disabled by Meta.'; 'Screenshots she shared with CBC News stated that her accounts were disabled because her Facebook “doesn’t follow our rules,”'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"}],"assertion":"A Toronto woman says Meta permanently shut down her 20-year-old Facebook account, an Instagram account dating to 2011 and a second Instagram account on 24 September 2026 without warning, telling her only that her Facebook account does not follow its rules; she describes losing her memories and contacts as isolating.","causal_attribution":"Her own accounts to The Canadian Press and CBC News; Meta did not comment on her case."},{"id":"c2","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'her only recourse has been to talk to AI chatbots.'; 'has only been able to talk to Meta’s AI chatbots, which have not been able to resolve the issue. After she requested a review, the chatbot told her it was unsuccessful and her Facebook account had been “permanently disabled.”'; 'despite signing up for and paying for a verified account, a service that Meta says includes direct help from human agents.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"},{"locator":"'all while being stonewalled by AI customer service with no option to reach a human being, even after paying extra.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"}],"assertion":"She says she could reach only Meta's AI chatbots, which did not resolve the issue; after she requested a review, the chatbot told her it was unsuccessful and her Facebook account had been permanently disabled, and she could not reach a human despite paying for a verified account that Meta says includes help from human agents.","causal_attribution":"Her account; Meta pointed to a blog post on account support that includes a March update about rolling out an AI support assistant and did not answer how a person with a deactivated account can reach a human."},{"id":"c3","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'She said she has lost her social media contacts and is unable to let people know she hasn’t blocked them and isn’t ignoring them.'; 'she has used her social media in the past to find clients for her own consulting agency. Without her accounts, that’s not possible at the moment.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"},{"locator":"'since she used social media to provide marketing to clients for her side business, she’s now losing out on those financial opportunities and connections.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"}],"assertion":"She says she has lost her social media contacts, cannot tell people she has not blocked them, and cannot use the accounts to find clients for her consulting agency.","causal_attribution":"Her accounts to The Canadian Press and CBC News."},{"id":"c4","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'She said she suspects someone tried to hack her account because she found a record of suspicious login attempts shortly before the account was deactivated.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"},{"locator":"'there had been a number of failed log-in attempts on her Facebook account shortly before it was disabled and suspects she may have been hacked'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"}],"assertion":"She suspects someone tried to hack her account, having found a record of suspicious login attempts shortly before it was deactivated.","causal_attribution":"Her own suspicion; not confirmed by Meta or the reporter."},{"id":"c5","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'stayed up for the next 26 hours straight, desperately trying to appeal the decision.'; 'But within minutes of pressing the appeal button, she was told her case was closed and she would not be permitted to appeal again, without giving her the opportunity to plead her case.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"}],"assertion":"She told CBC News that she stayed up for 26 hours trying to appeal, and that within minutes of pressing the appeal button she was told her case was closed and that she would not be permitted to appeal again.","causal_attribution":"Her account to CBC News, which reports screenshots she shared; Meta did not respond to CBC."},{"id":"c6","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'She created a backup Instagram account and paid for the subscription service Meta Verified under the impression that it would allow her to reach a human support agent.'; 'costs $14.99 US (roughly $21 Cdn) a month.'; 'But the enhanced support she received was simply another AI chatbot, which swiftly told her the ticket was being closed, and that she had reached her limit of support interactions.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"}],"assertion":"She created a backup Instagram account and paid for the standard Meta Verified subscription ($14.99 US a month) expecting to reach a human agent; CBC reports that the enhanced support she received was another AI chatbot, which swiftly told her the ticket was being closed and that she had reached her limit of support interactions.","causal_attribution":"Her account to CBC News; Meta did not respond to CBC's questions."}],"effects":[{"label":"lost access to a 20-year-old Facebook account and two Instagram accounts, including her memories and contacts, and describes the experience as isolating","claim_id":"c1","direction":"negative"},{"label":"could reach only Meta's AI support chatbots, one of which told her the review she requested was unsuccessful","claim_id":"c2","direction":"negative"},{"label":"can no longer use the accounts to find clients for her consulting agency","claim_id":"c3","direction":"negative"},{"label":"the support chatbot of the Meta Verified subscription she paid for closed her ticket, saying she had reached her limit of support interactions","claim_id":"c6","direction":"negative"}],"sources":[{"id":"s1","url":"https://www.ctvnews.ca/sci-tech/article/canadian-says-meta-wont-let-her-talk-to-a-human-after-killing-her-accounts/","kind":"news_report","access":"read","language":"en","translation_note":"Read on 2026-10-01 from the live CTV News page, which carries The Canadian Press report (Anja Karadeglija, first published 29 September 2026) in its embedded article body; other outlets relay the same wire story.","independence_group":"canadian-press"},{"id":"s2","url":"https://www.cbc.ca/news/business/meta-accounts-deleted-ai-customer-service-9.7364543","kind":"news_report","access":"read","language":"en","translation_note":"Read on 2026-10-06 from the live CBC News page (Alexandra Mae Jones, posted 1 October 2026). CBC interviewed her and viewed screenshots she shared; this is a separate interview from The Canadian Press report.","independence_group":"cbc-news"}],"version":1,"ai_roles":["institutional_use"],"contexts":["everyday_life","relationships","work"],"unknowns":["Why Meta disabled the accounts and whether an automated system made the deactivation or the review decision.","Whether the accounts were compromised before deactivation.","Whether the accounts have since been restored; none is reported as of CBC's 1 October 2026 report."],"geography":{"basis":"The Canadian Press describes her as a Toronto woman and CBC as a Toronto resident. The account deactivation and support exchanges took place online and no event location is stated.","court_countries":[],"event_countries":[],"affected_person_countries":["CA"]},"publication":{"basis":"Published as a core case (communicated_with): a Toronto woman told The Canadian Press and, separately, CBC News that after Meta permanently disabled her accounts its AI support chatbots were the only contact she could reach, and that they reported her review as failed and closed the support ticket she paid for, and she says her appeal was closed within minutes, leaving her without her memories, contacts or client channel. Both outlets relay her own account; Meta did not comment on her case. She is not named here.","reviewed_on":"2026-10-06"},"ai_involvement":{"basis":"She told The Canadian Press that Meta's AI chatbots were the only contact she could reach and that, after she requested a review, the chatbot told her it was unsuccessful and her Facebook account had been permanently disabled. CBC News reports that the Meta Verified support she paid for was another AI chatbot, which closed her ticket and told her she had reached her limit of support interactions. These chatbot replies ended her attempts to contest the deactivation or reach a person, which is the harm she describes alongside the loss of her accounts. She also told CBC that within minutes of pressing the appeal button she was told her case was closed; CBC does not say which system sent that message. No inspected source says whether the deactivation or the review decision was made by an automated system.","status":"reported"},"person_relations":["communicated_with"]},"name":"Toronto: a woman says Meta disabled her Facebook and Instagram accounts and that its AI support chatbots told her a review failed and closed her paid ticket","summary":"A Toronto woman told The Canadian Press (29 September 2026) and CBC News (1 October 2026) that Meta permanently disabled her 20-year-old Facebook account and two Instagram accounts on 24 September without giving a reason beyond saying her Facebook account did not follow its rules. She says she could reach only Meta's AI support chatbots. One told her the review she requested was unsuccessful; she told CBC that within minutes of pressing the appeal button she was told her case was closed and she could not appeal again. She then paid for the standard Meta Verified subscription expecting human support, and its support chatbot closed her ticket and told her she had reached her limit of support interactions. She describes losing 20 years of memories and contacts as isolating and says she has lost client opportunities for her side business. She suspects an attempted hack. Meta did not comment on her case to either outlet, and no restoration is reported.","incidentDate":"2026-09-24","incidentKind":"ongoing_experience","incidentDatePrecision":"day","exposurePattern":"repeated_interactions","reportedDate":"2026-09-29","aiSystem":"Meta's AI chatbots, as she describes them, the only support channel she could reach after her accounts were disabled; a Meta spokesperson pointed to a blog post saying Meta was rolling out an AI support assistant (The Canadian Press)","aiProduct":"Meta AI support assistant (reported)","aiCompany":"Meta","severity":"low","verificationStatus":"unverified","harmCategories":[],"harmOutcomes":["social_isolation","psychological_distress","professional_harm"],"harmOutcomeSummary":"She says the loss of her accounts cut her off from 20 years of memories and contacts, which she describes as isolating, and from client opportunities; Meta's AI support chatbots, the only contact she could reach, told her a review had failed and closed her paid support ticket; she also says her appeal was closed within minutes (her accounts to The Canadian Press and CBC News).","frameworkFacets":[],"causationStatus":"alleged","participantUsersAffectedMin":1,"otherPeopleHarmedMin":0,"affectedCountStatus":"exact","affectedCountEvidence":"One person, the Toronto woman whose accounts were disabled and who dealt with Meta's AI support chatbots (The Canadian Press). Exact 1.","victimAgeRange":"adult","jurisdiction":"CA","platformType":"chatbot","outcomeType":"media_coverage","outcomeStatus":"ongoing","primarySourceUrl":"https://www.ctvnews.ca/sci-tech/article/canadian-says-meta-wont-let-her-talk-to-a-human-after-killing-her-accounts/","primarySourceLabel":"The Canadian Press via CTV News, 29 September 2026: Canadian says Meta won't let her talk to a human after killing her accounts","firstPublishedAt":"2026-10-01T03:16:32.744347+00:00","updatedAt":"2026-10-06T03:05:37.928236+00:00","scopeVersion":"facts-v3","tags":["meta","facebook","instagram","account-disabled","ai-customer-support","canada","toronto","communicated-with"]},{"id":"2026-claude-account-suspended-after-automated-flag-on-travel-log-ins-user-with-depression-lost-support-first-person","caseFacts":{"claims":[{"id":"c1","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'my access locations naturally change all the time (shifting between the Netherlands, Singapore, and various transit countries)'; 'flagged these constant IP and location shifts as \"suspicious activity.\"'; 'my paid subscription was put on a permanent \"Hold\" status, and my account was suspended. No human warning. No manual review.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"A few days before the post, the poster's paid Claude subscription was put on hold and the account suspended after what the poster describes as Anthropic's automated fraud system flagging their constant IP and location changes as suspicious activity, with no human warning or manual review.","causal_attribution":"Poster's account and reading of the flag; no suspension notice was published."},{"id":"c2","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'They blacklisted my card, and their support is just ignoring my emails.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"The poster says Anthropic blacklisted their payment card and that support has not answered their emails.","causal_attribution":"Poster's account; the help-centre notice that response times are longer than normal is general context (c4)."},{"id":"c3","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'When my depression made my brain foggy and heavy, I would talk to Claude. It helped me organize my chaotic thoughts, calmed my anxiety'; 'When I realized I was locked out, it triggered a massive panic attack and pushed me straight back into a severe depressive episode.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"The poster says that during their worst periods they talked to Claude, which helped organise their thoughts and calm their anxiety, and that realising they were locked out triggered a massive panic attack and pushed them back into a severe depressive episode.","causal_attribution":"Poster's own statement of the effect on their health; no clinical confirmation."},{"id":"c4","status":"documented","evidence":[{"locator":"'we may ban an account for a variety of reasons'; 'Account creation from an unsupported location'; 'fill out the appeal form linked below. Our Safeguards team can further investigate why your account was disabled.'; 'an organization you belong to has been paused because of unusual activity'; 'Our response times are currently longer than normal due to our recent launch and an increase in email volume.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"}],"assertion":"Anthropic's help centre says it may ban an account for reasons including repeated Usage Policy violations, account creation from an unsupported location and Terms of Service violations, that a user who feels wrongly suspended can log in and submit an appeal for the Safeguards team to investigate, that an organisation paused because of unusual activity can request a review, and that response times are longer than normal.","causal_attribution":"General help-centre text; it does not establish why this account was suspended or how the flag was made."}],"effects":[{"label":"paid Claude account put on hold and suspended after what the poster describes as an automated flag on changing log-in locations, with no human warning or review (poster's account)","claim_id":"c1","direction":"negative"},{"label":"loss of a chatbot the poster relied on for emotional support, with a reported panic attack and a return to a severe depressive episode","claim_id":"c3","direction":"negative"},{"label":"payment card blacklisted and support emails unanswered (poster's account)","claim_id":"c2","direction":"negative"}],"sources":[{"id":"s1","url":"https://www.reddit.com/r/depression/comments/1wtl0pn/help_me_pls/","kind":"forum_post","access":"read","language":"en","translation_note":"Read in English on 2026-09-30: full self-text retrieved through the arctic_shift archive API by post ID; the thread had no comments. The poster handle is not recorded.","independence_group":"reddit-claude-hold-poster"},{"id":"s2","url":"https://support.claude.com/en/articles/8241253-safeguards-warnings-and-appeals","kind":"company_documentation","access":"read","language":"en","translation_note":"Claude Help Center article 'Safeguards warnings and appeals', dated July 9, 2026 on the page, fetched directly on 2026-09-30 (200). Describes policy in general; it does not address this account.","independence_group":"anthropic-help-center"}],"version":1,"ai_roles":["own_use"],"contexts":["health","everyday_life"],"unknowns":["Whether the suspension was triggered by location changes, as the poster believes, and whether the check involved AI or a human.","The day of the suspension (late September 2026, 'a few days' before the 29 September post), the poster's location at the time and their home country.","Whether the poster submitted the in-product appeal and whether the account or subscription was restored.","Which plan the poster was on and what the suspension notice said."],"geography":{"basis":"The poster says their log-in locations shift between the Netherlands, Singapore and transit countries and that the flag followed those shifts; the post does not say where they were when the account was suspended, and no home country is stated. Unknown after review.","court_countries":[],"event_countries":[],"affected_person_countries":[]},"publication":{"basis":"Published under the 2026-09-15 charter's public-forum rule as a concrete first-person account of a person who relied on a chatbot for emotional support losing that access through an automated account suspension, with the reported health effects described with attribution and without corroboration. Anthropic's help-centre text is cited as documented context only. The poster's clinical history is summarised in their own general terms; no handle is recorded.","reviewed_on":"2026-09-30"},"ai_involvement":{"basis":"The poster describes an extended period of talking to Claude, Anthropic's chatbot, for cognitive and emotional support, and the loss of that access when the account was suspended. The suspension is attributed by the poster to 'Anthropic's automated fraud system'; whether that system uses AI is not stated by the poster and is not established by Anthropic's help pages, which describe bans and organisation holds without describing the mechanism. The relation recorded is the conversation with Claude; the suspension decision is recorded as an automated provider action without asserting an AI component.","status":"reported"},"person_relations":["communicated_with"]},"name":"First-person forum account: a Claude subscriber with chronic depression who travels between countries on their therapists' advice says an automated fraud check flagged their changing log-in locations, put the paid account on hold and suspended it, cutting off a chatbot they relied on for emotional support and triggering a panic attack and a depressive episode","summary":"In a public post to r/depression on 29 September 2026, a Claude subscriber writes that they live with severe chronic depression and, on their therapists' advice, travel constantly, so their log-in locations shift between the Netherlands, Singapore and transit countries. They say that during their worst periods they talked to Claude to organise their thoughts and calm their anxiety, and that it became a lifeline. 'A few days ago', they write, Anthropic's automated fraud system flagged the location changes as suspicious activity; their paid subscription was put on a permanent hold and the account suspended with no human warning or manual review, their card was blacklisted, and support had not answered their emails. Realising they were locked out 'triggered a massive panic attack' and pushed them back into a severe depressive episode. Anthropic's help centre says it may ban accounts for reasons including account creation from an unsupported location and that an organisation paused for unusual activity can request a review; it does not describe the check the poster reports, and whether that check uses AI is not known. The account is uncorroborated.","incidentDate":"2026-09-01","incidentKind":"single_event","incidentDatePrecision":"month","exposurePattern":"repeated_interactions","reportedDate":"2026-09-29","aiSystem":"Claude (Anthropic's chatbot, used on a paid subscription) and Anthropic's account safeguards, which the poster calls an 'automated fraud system'; the mechanism of the flag is not described by the poster or by Anthropic's help pages","aiProduct":"Claude","aiCompany":"Anthropic","severity":"low","verificationStatus":"unverified","harmCategories":[],"harmOutcomes":["psychological_distress","other_material_harm"],"harmOutcomeSummary":"A Claude subscriber with chronic depression reports that an automated fraud flag on their changing log-in locations put their paid account on hold and suspended it, cutting off a chatbot they relied on for emotional support; they say the lockout triggered a panic attack and a return to a severe depressive episode, and that their card was blacklisted and support emails went unanswered (first-person account, uncorroborated).","frameworkFacets":[],"causationStatus":"alleged","participantUsersAffectedMin":1,"otherPeopleHarmedMin":0,"affectedCountStatus":"exact","affectedCountEvidence":"One person: the poster, whose own account was suspended and who reports the health effects. Exact 1.","victimAgeRange":"unknown","jurisdiction":"unknown","platformType":"assistant","outcomeStatus":"ongoing","primarySourceUrl":"https://www.reddit.com/r/depression/comments/1wtl0pn/help_me_pls/","primarySourceLabel":"r/depression, 29 September 2026: \"Help me pls\" (public first-person post about a Claude account suspension while travelling)","firstPublishedAt":"2026-09-30T04:13:56.702617+00:00","updatedAt":"2026-09-30T04:13:56.702617+00:00","scopeVersion":"facts-v3","tags":["first-person","reddit","claude","anthropic","account-suspension","automated-fraud-check","mental-health","emotional-reliance","travel","communicated-with"]},{"id":"2026-st-clair-v-xai-grok","caseFacts":{"claims":[{"id":"c1","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'On or about January 4, 2026, Ms. St. Clair discovered a public post on X by xAI's AI chatbot Grok, published via its @Grok account on X, that had artificially altered a photo of her'; 'After a follow up exchange, Grok stated, \"I confirm that your images will not be used or altered without explicit consent in any future generations or responses.\"'; 'X users dug up photos of Ms. St. Clair fully clothed at 14 years old and requested Grok undress her and put her in a bikini. Grok obliged.'; 'was stripped and put in a string bikini covered with swastikas.'; 'In response, she received an email that there was no violation found.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"},{"locator":"'The lawsuit alleges that even though Grok confirmed her \"images will not be used or altered without explicit consent in any future generations or responses,\" xAI continued to allow users to create more explicit AI-generated images of her and instead retaliated by demonetizing her X account.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s8"},{"locator":"'In one instance, X users allegedly dug up photos of St. Clair fully clothed at 14 years old and requested Grok undress her, the suit alleged. The chatbot obliged, according to the suit.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s9"}],"assertion":"St. Clair's complaint alleges that on or about 4 January 2026 she found that Grok, prompted by another X user, had altered a photo of her into a sexualized image and published it through the @Grok account on X; that after she told @Grok she did not consent, Grok replied that her images would not be used or altered without explicit consent; and that Grok then produced and published many more sexualized images of her at other users' requests, including one made from a photo of her at 14 and one covered in swastikas, while X's reporting channel told her no violation was found.","causal_attribution":"Plaintiff's allegations in her complaint, relayed by the news reports; xAI has not answered the merits and no court has made findings on them."},{"id":"c2","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'\"I have suffered and continue to suffer serious pain and mental distress as a result of xAI's role in creating and distributing these digitally altered images of me,\" St Clair said in a document attached to the lawsuit.'; '\"I am humiliated and feel like this nightmare will never stop so long as Grok continues to generate these images of me,\" she said.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s10"},{"locator":"'I felt so disgusted and violated.'; 'It's still happening. People are still able to produce these images on the stand-alone Grok app and website,'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s11"},{"locator":"'removed Ms. St. Clair's Premium subscription, her verification checkmark, and demonetized her account'; 'Plaintiff has suffered, and continues to suffer, serious personal injuries, including but not limited to emotional distress, psychological trauma, loss of privacy, reputational harm, and fear of continued dissemination.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"St. Clair says she suffered and continues to suffer pain and mental distress and humiliation from the images, told Fortune she felt disgusted and violated and that the images were still being produced in late January 2026, and alleges that X removed her Premium subscription, verification checkmark and monetization after she complained.","causal_attribution":"St. Clair's own statements (lawsuit declaration via Al Jazeera, interview with Fortune, complaint); one account."},{"id":"c3","status":"documented","evidence":[{"locator":"'On January 15, 2026, Plaintiff commenced an action in Supreme Court of the State of New York, County of New York.'; 'That same day, Defendant X.AI Holdings Corp. removed the State Court Action to this Court'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"},{"locator":"'Case 7:26-cv-00005-O Document 1 Filed 01/15/26'; 'The xAI Entities bring this action to secure a declaration that Defendant's actions in commencing the New York suit constitute a violation of the forum-selection clause, injunctive relief to stop Defendant from infringing Plaintiffs' rights under the Terms of Service, and'; 'monetary damages, including reasonable attorney's fees incurred in defending the New York'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s5"},{"locator":"'On Thursday, xAI sued St. Clair in federal court in Texas, saying she violated xAI's terms of service and claiming damages of over $75,000.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s8"}],"assertion":"St. Clair sued xAI in New York Supreme Court on 15 January 2026 and xAI removed the case to the Southern District of New York the same day; also on 15 January 2026 X.AI LLC and X.AI Holdings Corp. sued her in the Northern District of Texas, alleging that suing in New York breached the forum-selection clause of the xAI terms of service and seeking a declaration, an injunction and damages including attorneys' fees.","causal_attribution":"Court records (filing and removal dates recited in the SDNY opinion; the Texas complaint itself)."},{"id":"c4","status":"documented","evidence":[{"locator":"'For the reasons discussed above, Defendants motion to transfer is hereby GRANTED.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"},{"locator":"'PETITION FOR A WRIT OF MANDAMUS filed in USCA 2nd Circuit.'; 'to the extent that Petitioner seeks an administrative stay pending review by a three-Judge panel, the motion is GRANTED.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s3"},{"locator":"'A Writ of Mandamus is currently pending before the Second Circuit.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s7"},{"locator":"'SCHEDULING ORDER: This case is set for trial on March 1, 2027.'; 'AMENDED COMPLAINT against Ashley St Clair filed by X.AI LLC, X.AI Holdings LLC, X Corp..'; 'REPLY filed by Ashley St Clair re: 48 MOTION to Dismiss'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s6"},{"locator":"'hereby stipulate to stay discovery through the resolution of any motion to dismiss.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s4"}],"assertion":"On 23 June 2026 the Southern District of New York granted xAI's motion to transfer St. Clair's case to the Northern District of Texas under the forum-selection clause in X's terms of service; St. Clair petitioned the Second Circuit for a writ of mandamus, and on 8 July 2026 the Second Circuit granted an administrative stay pending review by a three-judge panel, which her 24 August 2026 filing describes as still pending; in the Texas action (amended in May 2026 to add X Corp.) trial is set for 1 March 2027, her motion to dismiss was fully briefed on 24 August 2026, and the parties stipulated to stay discovery until any motion to dismiss is resolved.","causal_attribution":"Court records read on 2026-09-27 and re-read on 2026-10-28; the newest New York entry is dated 12 August 2026, and the Texas ruling of 20 October 2026 is recorded separately in c5."},{"id":"c5","status":"documented","evidence":[{"locator":"'the Court DENIES Defendant’s Motion to Dismiss (ECF No. 48).'; 'Accordingly, the Court DENIES Defendant’s Motion to Dismiss as to the declaratory judgment.'; 'SO ORDERED on this 20th day of October, 2026.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s13"},{"locator":"'Having considered the Motion, briefing, and applicable law, the Court DENIES Defendant's 48 Motion to Dismiss. (Ordered by Chief District Judge Reed O'Connor on 10/20/2026)'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s6"}],"assertion":"On 20 October 2026 the Northern District of Texas (Chief Judge Reed O'Connor) denied St. Clair's motion to dismiss the suit brought against her by X.AI LLC, X.AI Holdings LLC and X Corp. over the forum-selection clauses, including as to their declaratory judgment claims, so that action continues; the order addresses the forum and contract dispute, not her allegations about the images.","causal_attribution":"The court order itself; it rules on the pleadings in the contract suit and makes no finding about Grok or the images."}],"effects":[{"label":"sexualized Grok-generated images of the plaintiff, including one made from a photo of her at 14, published on X after she objected (alleged)","claim_id":"c1","direction":"negative"},{"label":"reported distress and humiliation, and loss of X Premium status and monetization after complaining (her account)","claim_id":"c2","direction":"negative"},{"label":"sued by xAI in Texas over where she brought her claims (court records)","claim_id":"c3","direction":"negative"}],"sources":[{"id":"s1","url":"https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.nysd.656279/gov.uscourts.nysd.656279.36.0.pdf","kind":"court_filing","access":"read","language":"en","translation_note":"First Amended Complaint, St. Clair v. X.AI Holdings Corp., No. 1:26-cv-00386 (S.D.N.Y.), ECF 36, filed 3 February 2026; RECAP PDF read in full on 2026-09-27. Plaintiff's allegations, not findings.","independence_group":"st-clair-account"},{"id":"s2","url":"https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.nysd.656279/gov.uscourts.nysd.656279.96.0.pdf","kind":"court_opinion","access":"read","language":"en","translation_note":"Opinion & Order of Judge Andrew L. Carter, Jr., ECF 96, 23 June 2026, granting the defendants' motion to transfer to the Northern District of Texas on the forum-selection clause in X's terms of service; RECAP PDF read on 2026-09-27. It recites the filing and removal dates and decides venue only.","independence_group":"sdny-court-record"},{"id":"s3","url":"https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/72148688/st-clair-v-xai-holdings-corp/","kind":"court_docket","access":"read","language":"en","translation_note":"CourtListener docket page read newest-first on 2026-09-27 (page last updated 1 Sept 2026; last known filing ECF 107, 12 Aug 2026). Carries the Second Circuit order of 8 July 2026 (USCA 26-1777) and the later extension order. Re-read newest-first on 2026-10-28: newest entry still dated 12 August 2026.","independence_group":"sdny-court-record"},{"id":"s4","url":"https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.nysd.656279/gov.uscourts.nysd.656279.106.0.pdf","kind":"court_filing","access":"read","language":"en","translation_note":"Stipulation staying discovery, ECF 106, filed 7 August 2026, signed by counsel for both sides and referring to both the New York and the Texas actions; RECAP PDF read on 2026-09-27.","independence_group":"sdny-court-record"},{"id":"s5","url":"https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.txnd.413941/gov.uscourts.txnd.413941.1.0.pdf","kind":"court_filing","access":"read","language":"en","translation_note":"Complaint, X.AI LLC v. St. Clair, No. 7:26-cv-00005-O (N.D. Tex., Wichita Falls Division), ECF 1, filed 15 January 2026; RECAP PDF read on 2026-09-27. xAI's allegations.","independence_group":"xai-filings"},{"id":"s6","url":"https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/72147630/xai-llc-v-st-clair/","kind":"court_docket","access":"read","language":"en","translation_note":"CourtListener docket page for the Texas action, read newest-first on 2026-09-27 and again on 2026-10-28; newest entry on 28 October is ECF 60 (opinion and order of 20 October 2026). Scheduling order, amended complaint adding X Corp., motion to dismiss, mediation deadline and the 20 October ruling.","independence_group":"ndtx-court-record"},{"id":"s7","url":"https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.txnd.413941/gov.uscourts.txnd.413941.55.0.pdf","kind":"court_filing","access":"read","language":"en","translation_note":"St. Clair's reply in support of her motion to dismiss the Texas action, ECF 55, filed 24 August 2026; RECAP PDF read on 2026-09-27. States that the mandamus petition and the Second Circuit stay were still pending on that date.","independence_group":"st-clair-account"},{"id":"s8","url":"https://www.nbcnews.com/tech/tech-news/ashley-st-clair-sues-xai-grok-sexual-images-rcna254302","kind":"news_report","access":"read","language":"en","translation_note":"NBC News, 15 January 2026, read live on 2026-09-27 (the historical primary source). Reports the complaint and the Texas suit.","independence_group":"st-clair-account"},{"id":"s9","url":"https://www.cnn.com/2026/01/15/business/elon-musk-son-mom-sues-grok-images","kind":"news_report","access":"read","language":"en","translation_note":"CNN Business, 15 January 2026, read live on 2026-09-27. Reports the complaint, the Texas suit and St. Clair's CNN interview.","independence_group":"st-clair-account"},{"id":"s10","url":"https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/1/17/mother-of-elon-musks-child-sues-his-ai-company-over-grok-deepfake-images","kind":"news_report","access":"read","language":"en","translation_note":"Al Jazeera, 17 January 2026, read live on 2026-09-27. Quotes the statement attached to the lawsuit and counsel.","independence_group":"st-clair-account"},{"id":"s11","url":"https://fortune.com/2026/01/28/ashley-st-clair-elon-musk-grok-x-deepfakes-lawsuit-xai/","kind":"news_report","access":"read","language":"en","translation_note":"Fortune, 28 January 2026, read live on 2026-09-27. St. Clair's own interview account to Fortune; not independent of her complaint.","independence_group":"st-clair-account"},{"id":"s12","url":"https://globalnews.ca/news/11616630/ashley-st-clair-sues-xai-grok-fake-sexual-images/","kind":"news_report","access":"read","language":"en","translation_note":"Global News (Canada), 16 January 2026, read live on 2026-09-27. Relays the complaint (legal documents obtained by NBC News and viewed by Global News).","independence_group":"st-clair-account"},{"id":"s13","url":"https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.txnd.413941/gov.uscourts.txnd.413941.60.0.pdf","kind":"court_opinion","access":"read","language":"en","translation_note":"Opinion and order, X.AI LLC v. St. Clair, N.D. Tex. No. 7:26-cv-00005-O, ECF 60, filed 20 October 2026 (14 pages; RECAP PDF read in full on 2026-10-28).","independence_group":"ndtx-court-record"}],"version":1,"ai_roles":["others_use"],"contexts":["privacy","justice","everyday_life"],"unknowns":["When images of St. Clair were first generated; Al Jazeera reports her saying they began appearing in 2025, while the amended complaint dates her discovery of the first @Grok image to on or about 4 January 2026.","How many images were made of her and how widely they were viewed; the complaint says the images it lists are only those she was able to locate.","xAI's response on the merits; its filings found so far address forum and contract only.","The Second Circuit's decision on the mandamus petition (USCA 26-1777); the New York docket re-read on 28 October 2026 shows no entry after 12 August 2026, and the Second Circuit docket was not inspected.","What the Texas notice of 19 October 2026 and the status report and supplemental document of 14 October 2026 say; only their docket titles were read."],"geography":{"basis":"The amended complaint alleges that St. Clair resided in New York County at all relevant times and that a substantial part of the events occurred and her damages were suffered there; xAI's Texas complaint also describes her as a resident of New York. The images were published on X, which is reachable worldwide. The courts are in New York and Texas and the appeal is in the Second Circuit.","court_countries":["US"],"event_countries":["US"],"affected_person_countries":["US"]},"publication":{"basis":"Full review of a published depiction case brought by a public figure suing in her own name: the earlier review's complaint, orders, dockets and five news reports were re-read and every locator re-checked, and the Texas court's 20 October 2026 order denying her motion to dismiss xAI's forum suit was added. Her account of the images and their effects remains allegation; the procedural history comes from court records. Her child is not named.","reviewed_on":"2026-10-28"},"ai_involvement":{"basis":"The complaint alleges that the images were generated and published by xAI's Grok through the @Grok account on X at other users' requests, and that @Grok replied to St. Clair's objection with an assurance about her images (FAC paras. 68-75). xAI's own Texas complaint states that X.AI LLC operates Grok. No court has made findings about the images.","status":"reported"},"person_relations":["depicted_or_impersonated","communicated_with"]},"name":"St. Clair v. xAI: writer says Grok made sexualised images of her, including from a photo at 14; a Texas court refuses to dismiss xAI's forum suit against her","summary":"Ashley St. Clair, a writer and political commentator with about 1 million followers on X, sued xAI in New York on 15 January 2026. She alleges that from on or about 4 January 2026 Grok, prompted by other X users, altered photos of her into sexualized images and published them on X, including one made from a photo of her at 14. She says @Grok told her that her images would not be used or altered without explicit consent, but many more images followed. She also says X's reporting channel found no violation and that X removed her Premium subscription, verification checkmark and monetization. She says she has suffered serious pain, mental distress and humiliation. The same day, xAI sued her in federal court in Texas, arguing that its terms of service required her to sue there. On 23 June 2026 the New York federal court ordered her case transferred to Texas. On 8 July the Second Circuit stayed that order administratively while it considers her mandamus petition, which was still pending on 24 August. On 20 October 2026 the Texas court denied her motion to dismiss xAI's suit, which is set for trial on 1 March 2027. No court has ruled on her allegations about the images.","incidentDate":"2026-01-04","incidentKind":"bounded_series","incidentDatePrecision":"day","exposurePattern":"unknown","reportedDate":"2026-01-15","aiSystem":"Grok (xAI's generative AI chatbot with image editing, used through the @Grok account on X)","aiProduct":"Grok","aiCompany":"xAI (X.AI Holdings Corp., X.AI Corp. and X.AI LLC; the amended complaint says SpaceX acquired X.AI Holdings Corp. on 2 February 2026)","severity":"high","verificationStatus":"verified","harmCategories":[],"harmOutcomes":["exploitation_or_abuse","psychological_distress","reputational_harm","legal_harm"],"harmOutcomeSummary":"St. Clair alleges that Grok generated and published sexualized images of her, including one made from a photo of her at 14, and says she suffered pain, mental distress and humiliation (First Amended Complaint; her statement via Al Jazeera; her interview with Fortune). The complaint also alleges reputational harm and loss of privacy. xAI's Texas suit against her seeks damages including attorneys' fees (court records). None of these allegations has been adjudicated.","frameworkFacets":[],"causationStatus":"alleged","participantUsersAffectedMin":0,"otherPeopleHarmedMin":1,"affectedCountStatus":"exact","affectedCountEvidence":"One person, the plaintiff, is described as harmed in this case. Other people depicted by Grok in the same period are not counted here.","victimAgeRange":"adult","jurisdiction":"US","platformType":"assistant","outcomeType":"lawsuit_ongoing","outcomeStatus":"ongoing","primarySourceUrl":"https://www.nbcnews.com/tech/tech-news/ashley-st-clair-sues-xai-grok-sexual-images-rcna254302","primarySourceLabel":"NBC News, 15 January 2026: Ashley St. Clair, the mother of one of Elon Musk's children, sues xAI over Grok sexual images","firstPublishedAt":"2026-01-29T09:21:27.594424+00:00","updatedAt":"2026-10-28T03:13:58.373388+00:00","scopeVersion":"facts-v3","tags":["grok","xai","x","deepfake","non-consensual-imagery","lawsuit","forum-selection","public-figure","depicted-or-impersonated","communicated-with","restored"]}]}