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NOPE · AI and people

AI incidents

Reports of AI-related harm and adverse experiences affecting people’s safety, wellbeing, rights and livelihoods. Explore what happened and the evidence available.

NOPE’s core concern is when AI communicates with a person, acts on their behalf, or depicts or impersonates them. The tracker is wider: it also records consequential decisions and claims about people. Each account is reviewed for publication; claims may remain uncorroborated or disputed. How we review and count cases

In this selection

Published cases
20
Countries with reported events
7
Located 9 of 20 cases · 11 unknown
Languages in checked sources
9
Recorded for 20 of 20 cases

2 cases have no reviewed AI-to-person relation yet: 0 not yet reviewed and 2 reviewed as unknown. Show these cases

These figures describe the cases collected by NOPE. Coverage varies with discovery, reporting and available evidence. They do not estimate how often AI-related harm occurs.

Response counts currently use each case’s principal recorded outcome. Further proceedings may be described in its account.

Cases in this selection, counted once in their first known event year. A series may continue beyond that year. Reporting and collection dates are excluded. NOPE has searched recent events more thoroughly than earlier years, so bar heights also reflect collection effort.

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20 of 560 published cases

May 2026IndiaUnidentified image and video tool

Bengaluru: actor Rukmini Vasanth says AI-generated photos passed off as hers are fake and files a complaint after AI-morphed photos and videos of her went viral in May 2026; police arrest three people, reported on 19 and 20 June 2026

According to ETV Bharat Kannada (20 June 2026) and Oneindia Kannada (19 June 2026), Bengaluru police arrested three people accused of using AI technology to morph photographs of the actor Rukmini Vasanth and of circulating AI-made photos and videos depicting her on social media. ETV Bharat reports that the material went viral on social media platforms and in some media in May, that it harmed her dignity and privacy and caused her mental harassment, and that she filed a complaint. In a statement on her social media accounts, quoted by ETV Bharat, she said the AI-generated photos circulating as hers were completely fake and that making and spreading manipulated content was a serious violation of privacy. Police seized three mobile phones and the accused were remanded to judicial custody. Oneindia reports that her face had been obscenely altered with AI technology in a video released on the internet. The reports do not name the tool used.

Core concern Medium reported severity Investigation Opened

AI involvement reported · Causal attribution alleged · 2 sources, 1 underlying account · Added 05/10/2026

2026Event location unknownUnidentified image and video tool

Singer Yıldız Tilbe objects publicly in May, June and October 2026 to AI-made videos and photos that use the singer's image without permission, including material that, in Tilbe's words, makes the singer talk with people the singer does not know

Turkish outlets reported on 3 October 2026 that the singer Yıldız Tilbe wrote on social media: "I am very tired of people adding my images to videos and photos using artificial intelligence. I am fed up with your AI. Stop sending me videos like this." T24 says the videos and photos were prepared without the singer's permission and were sent to Tilbe frequently during the day. In May 2026 Tilbe had said, in remarks reported by T24 and Posta, that AI was frightening and that some websites showed Tilbe talking with people the singer did not know at all. Yeni Asır reported in June 2026 that Tilbe told reporters the AI videos using the singer's face bothered the singer. No legal step or platform action is reported and no maker is named; Sözcü says followers prepared the material.

Core concern Low reported severity Media Coverage

AI involvement reported · Causal attribution supported · 5 sources, 1 underlying account · Added 05/10/2026

2026Event location unknownUnidentified image and video tool

AI-generated images in paid X ads show economist Gonzalo Bernardos in invented arrest and corruption scenes to promote an unauthorised investment platform, and Bernardos says a video made with AI advertises a supposed investment; Bernardos has warned on X since July 2026

Maldita.es reported on 1 October 2026 that it found at least 20 paid ads on X, circulated on 24 and 25 September 2026, that used AI-generated images to show the economist Gonzalo Bernardos in invented scenes, among them police searching the economist's home. The ads were seen more than 400,000 times and, depending on the device, led to pages imitating El Mundo that said Bernardos had been arrested and promoted Norden Core, a platform not authorised by the CNMV. Marca reported that Bernardos warned on X on 23 July 2026 that individuals were using the economist's image in fake ads made with AI or other tools. El Caso reported on 4 October 2026 that Bernardos said on X that many people were asking about a video advertising a supposed investment, that the video was made with AI and that Bernardos had never made such promotions. No source reports a person who lost money or a complaint to the police.

Core concern Low reported severity Media Coverage

AI involvement reported · Causal attribution supported · 3 sources, 2 underlying accounts · Added 05/10/2026

Event date unknownThailandUnidentified video and voice-cloning tool

Thailand: cyber police say an illegal gambling website, KFC888, used AI to fake the face and voice of luk thung singer Hai Arpaporn Nakhonsawan in advertising clips that urged people to sign up, as if she endorsed it; two Bangkok premises searched and a company representative summoned to acknowledge charges, reported 1 to 2 July 2026

Manager Online reported on 2 July 2026, citing the Royal Thai Police and its Cyber Crime Investigation Bureau, that cyber police had moved against a large online gambling network after finding that it used AI to fake the face and voice of Hai Arpaporn Nakhonsawan, a well-known luk thung singer, in advertising clips that urged people to join the website. The clips gave the false impression that she recommended the site, although she had no involvement. Police traced the clips to the website KFC888, which offered online lottery, foreign stock-index lottery and sports betting, with turnover estimated at about 120 million baht a month. They searched two locations in Bangkok, a residence believed to be linked to the site's executives and an electronic payment-gateway company, seized computers and documents, and summoned an authorised person of the company to acknowledge charges including a Computer Crime Act offence over AI-created images that may damage others. Komchadluek reported on 1 July that the singer went to the cyber police after Facebook Reels clips altered with AI used her face and voice without her consent.

Core concern Low reported severity Investigation Opened

AI involvement reported · Causal attribution alleged · 2 sources, 1 underlying account · Added 04/10/2026

Apr 2025Event location unknownUnidentified video tool

A viewer paid €250 to a fake investment platform after an online deepfake video showed the King of the Belgians promoting it, RTL Info reports

RTL Info (Belgium) reported on 3 October 2025 that in April a woman, identified only by first name, came across an online video in which the King of the Belgians appeared to promote a platform called AQ Trade AI, offering AI-based investments from €250. The video was a deepfake. After a phone call with a supposed adviser, the viewer paid €250. That night the viewer grew suspicious and called the bank, which immediately blocked the card. The report does not say whether the €250 was recovered. RTL Info ran the account alongside a Belgian authorities' awareness campaign on fake online investment offers.

Core concern Low reported severity Media Coverage

AI involvement reported · Causal attribution alleged · 1 source · Added 04/10/2026

Event date unknownBrazilUnidentified video tool

Paraíso das Águas, Mato Grosso do Sul: a farmer lost more than R$700,000, including a R$360,000 loan, after a video call in which scammers used AI to simulate the Viva Sorte prize-draw presenter

Three Mato Grosso do Sul outlets, all crediting BNC Notícias, reported on 10 April 2026 that a rural producer from Paraíso das Águas fell for the so-called Viva Sorte scam. In a video call, scammers used AI deepfake technology to simulate the image and voice of Renato Ambrósio, the presenter of the Viva Sorte prize draws, told the farmer a prize had been won and set out steps to release it: Pix transfers, sending the CPF tax number and sharing the phone screen while the banking app was open. The farmer followed the instructions and took out a R$360,000 loan; with interest, the total loss exceeded R$700,000. One report says the farmer gave this account to the police. The farmer is not identified, no date is given and no arrest is reported.

Core concern Medium reported severity Media Coverage

AI involvement reported · Causal attribution alleged · 3 sources, 1 underlying account · Added 04/10/2026

Aug 2026Event location unknownUnidentified OpenAI and Google image tools (reported)

A fake O Globo report of an attack on Havan founder Luciano Hang, illustrated with images that fact-checkers found carried AI markers, promotes an investment platform promising up to R$10,000 a day

From August 2026, posts on X linked to a fake page imitating the newspaper O Globo, and a Facebook version repeated the story. The page reported an attack on businessman Luciano Hang, founder of the Havan stores, and directed readers to a supposed investment platform promising R$3,000 to R$10,000 a day. The fact-checkers Lupa and Comprova found that no attack happened. Lupa reports that an OpenAI verification tool found a watermark indicating OpenAI image generation in the montage on the page; Comprova reports that SynthID indicated that the images it analysed, showing Hang injured, were made with Google's AI tool. Hang said in a note that criminals use his image, including AI manipulations, to promote fake investments. São Paulo's regional electoral court ordered X to remove posts falsely linking candidate Fernando Haddad to the fake attack. No investor loss is reported.

Core concern Low reported severity Media Coverage

AI involvement reported · Causal attribution supported · 6 sources, 3 underlying accounts · Added 02/10/2026

Feb 2026Event location unknownUnidentified video tool

Padre Diego Jaramillo of El Minuto de Dios says in February 2026 that videos, described by his organisation as made with AI and with a voice that is not his, falsely show him selling collagen and health products

On 23 February 2026 the Minuto de Dios organisation issued a public alert that ads circulating on social networks used the name, image and AI-manipulated videos of its president, the priest Diego Jaramillo Cuartas, with a voice that is not his, to make it appear that he recommended or sold health formulas. In a video published on the organisation's channels, Jaramillo said his image was being used as if he were a collagen seller and that this was totally false. The organisation called the ads deceptive advertising and said it was seeking their removal and reporting the facts to the authorities. No report says whether anyone bought the products.

Core concern Low reported severity Media Coverage

AI involvement reported · Causal attribution supported · 4 sources, 1 underlying account · Added 02/10/2026

1 Oct 2026Event location unknownUnidentified video tool

Influencer Juliano Floss says on X on 1 October 2026 that he will identify and sue those behind a fake intimate video, described by Brazilian outlets as AI-generated, showing him with another former Big Brother Brasil participant

A fake video simulating an intimate scene between dancer and influencer Juliano Floss and another participant of the 26th Big Brother Brasil began circulating on social networks on Thursday 1 October 2026. Metrópoles, SBT, Marie Claire (Globo) and Hugo Gloss describe it as generated with artificial intelligence. Floss wrote on X that he was noting the people involved 'name by name' and would find and sue whoever was committing a crime against him. SBT reported that the other participant and their team had not commented publicly. No complaint, filing or takedown is reported.

Core concern Medium reported severity Media Coverage

AI involvement reported · Causal attribution supported · 4 sources, 1 underlying account · Added 02/10/2026

Sept 2026Event location unknownUnidentified voice-cloning tool

Singer Samuel Sarmiento, formerly of Banda Los Recoditos, warns followers that fake videos using his voice cloned with AI are asking for money for his mother's funeral, hours after he announced her death in September 2026

Samuel Sarmiento, a former lead singer of Banda Los Recoditos, announced his mother's death on social media in late September 2026. Hours later he posted a video on his official Instagram account warning that people were circulating fake videos using his voice, cloned with AI, in which he appeared to ask for money to cover her funeral costs. 'No se vale que haya gente tan ruin que ande pidiendo dinero con mi voz, con IA, para el sepelio de mi madre', he said, adding that he was not asking anyone for money. La Razón, Récord, La Mejor and El Diario de Sonora relayed his video on 30 September 2026. No report says whether anyone paid, and no police complaint is reported.

Core concern Low reported severity Media Coverage

AI involvement reported · Causal attribution supported · 4 sources, 1 underlying account · Added 01/10/2026

Event date unknownEvent location unknownUnidentified video tool

Actor Tony Ramos's interview on Ana Maria Braga's 'Mais Você' is digitally altered and redubbed into a fake advertisement for a prostate remedy, reported as made with AI; Terra reported his team's warning in December 2023 and he recounted it on 'Roda Viva' in September 2026

Terra reported on 6 December 2023 that the team of the actor Tony Ramos, then appearing in the telenovela 'Terra e Paixão', had warned that an interview he gave to Ana Maria Braga's programme 'Mais Você' was digitally altered to promote a supposedly miraculous remedy for prostate hyperplasia. According to the team, his words were edited with advanced technology to make it seem he endorsed the product, his voice was redubbed, and the original footage was a tribute to fellow professionals. Terra describes the clips as fake videos created with artificial intelligence. On the TV programme 'Roda Viva' on 28 September 2026, Ramos said his image had been stolen from that interview, badly dubbed and made to sell a prostate medicine (Estado de Minas, 29 September 2026), and Estado de Minas describes the clip as a deepfake that circulated on social networks. No buyer losses, complaint or takedown are reported.

Core concern Low reported severity Media Coverage

AI involvement reported · Causal attribution supported · 2 sources · Added 01/10/2026

Sept 2026Event location unknownUnidentified video tool (suspected)

TV presenter Bettina Tietjen warns on Facebook in September 2026 that fake videos, described by outlets as AI deepfakes, show her advertising a remedy for Alzheimer's, and says scammers are behind them

Bettina Tietjen, host of the 'NDR Talk Show', wrote in a Facebook post on Tuesday 29 September 2026 that videos were apparently circulating in which she advertised a remedy for Alzheimer's. 'Das sind Fake-Videos, dahinter stecken Betrüger', she wrote, asking people not to fall for them. The spot on news agency (via Abendzeitung München) reports that she has nothing to do with the advertised product. MOPO describes the clips as fake AI videos, and spot on news and TAG24 say they are apparently deepfakes made or altered with artificial intelligence. No report says whether anyone bought the product, and no complaint or takedown is reported.

Core concern Low reported severity Media Coverage

AI involvement suspected · Causal attribution supported · 3 sources, 1 underlying account · Added 01/10/2026

Event date unknownEvent location unknownChatGPT (reported)

Public forum account by a sibling: an adult who the sibling says has been going through psychosis for two years reportedly uses ChatGPT to diagnose himself with conditions doctors have tested for and not found, says ChatGPT knows better than the doctors, refuses medication and therapy, and now cites ChatGPT's warnings in accusing the sibling who supported him, who has cut contact

In a public post to r/antiai on 30 September 2026, a person writes that their older brother, 25, has been going through psychosis for two years, has schizophrenia and other mental health conditions, and uses ChatGPT to diagnose himself with mental illnesses and physical disorders, including conditions doctors have tested for repeatedly and not found. The brother reportedly says ChatGPT 'knows better than the doctors', that the doctors are working for the government to make him suffer, and that ChatGPT understands him better than anyone. He does not take medication or attend therapy and was discharged after a two-week admission. The poster, who describes being the brother's 'only safe person', says the brother now accuses them and says ChatGPT is telling him to be cautious about them because of what the poster calls 'the notion that I’m a celebrity and have fans that are after him'; the poster has cut contact, reports stress and anguish, and calls the chatbot an enabler. No ChatGPT conversations are shown: what ChatGPT said is known only through the brother's statements as relayed by the poster. The account is uncorroborated.

Core concern Low reported severity

AI involvement reported · Causal attribution alleged · 1 source · Added 30/09/2026

Event date unknownUnited StatesUnidentified video tool

Utah buyer reports spending over $400 after a purported Oprah deepfake supplement ad

A Utah buyer told KSL that an apparent Oprah supplement advertisement persuaded her to spend over $400. She said the product did not match what had been represented and wanted a refund. A KSL follow-up in March 2026 explicitly described this same purchase as triggered by Oprah's deepfake doppelganger. The woman received supplements, so the payment is not treated as proof that the full sum was unrecoverably lost. Her purchase date is unknown.

Core concern Low reported severity

AI involvement reported · Causal attribution alleged · 2 sources, 1 underlying account · Added 30/09/2026

Event date unknownCanadaUnidentified video tool

Reports describe Markham woman losing C$1.7 million after a purported Musk deepfake

Reports relaying a W5 investigation describe a 51-year-old Markham woman who lost about C$1.7 million after a purported AI-altered Elon Musk investment video on Facebook. She reportedly mortgaged her home, borrowed from family and friends and used credit cards while being shown apparent profits. Withdrawal demands for fees and taxes led to further payments. The underlying W5 interview was not independently inspected in full; both written reports share that chain.

Core concern High reported severity

AI involvement reported · Causal attribution alleged · 2 sources, 1 underlying account · Added 30/09/2026

Event date unknownUnited StatesUnidentified video tool

Leesburg man reports nearly $45,000 loss and marital strain after purported Musk video messages

A Leesburg man told WKMG that he lost nearly $45,000 after a purported Elon Musk giveaway and subsequent investment offers. He described personalised video messages, payments, depleted accounts and maxed-out credit cards. The outlet presents the case in its AI deepfake investigation. He also said his wife wanted a divorce because of the scam; no completed divorce or loss of his home is established.

Core concern Medium reported severity

AI involvement reported · Causal attribution alleged · 1 source · Added 30/09/2026

Event date unknownUnited StatesUnidentified video tool

Daughter reports mother trusted a purported Owen Wilson deepfake and false job offer

A public Reddit family account says a mother trusted someone posing as Owen Wilson, despite her daughters' warnings. The poster says the contact moved from a game to WhatsApp and sent a video as proof of identity, while offering a supposed Warner Bros job and plans for a shared home. LADbible describes that attached video as AI-generated. The mother reportedly received small training payments and had not been asked for money or banking information. No financial loss is established.

Core concern Low reported severity

AI involvement reported · Causal attribution alleged · 2 sources, 1 underlying account · Added 30/09/2026

Event date unknownEvent location unknownUnidentified image and video tool

Southampton resident reports about five months of AI-generated celebrity persona messages and a £200 gift-card payment

The Daily Echo (29 June 2025), the Daily Mail (1 July 2025), and The Sun and the New York Post (2 July 2025) reported that a Southampton resident said the resident had been 'relentlessly' sent AI-generated or doctored celebrity images and videos on Facebook for about five months, with a fake prize certificate and requests for an activation fee to unlock a prize of £500,000 and a car. The resident said one persona presented as a celebrity said she loved the resident and asked for money, and that the resident paid £200 in Apple gift cards. The resident also said the messages were affecting the resident's mental health and said an acquaintance had lost over £1,000 to the same kind of scam (second-hand, not counted here). A University of Southampton AI expert described the messages as a phishing scam using an AI-generated prize certificate. All outlets rest on the resident's own account, and none reports verifying the messages. The start date is not established.

Core concern Low reported severity

AI involvement reported · Causal attribution alleged · 4 sources, 1 underlying account · Added 29/09/2026

1 Aug 2026 to 16 Sept 2026KazakhstanUnidentified video tool

Kazakhstan: the Prosecutor General's Office reported 119 trading-fraud cases registered in about six weeks, lured by deepfake videos of Elon Musk, Pavel Durov and other public figures and fake 'AI' platforms; a Taldykorgan woman transferred more than 7 million tenge

On 16 September 2026 the Prosecutor General's Office of Kazakhstan warned of an investment-fraud scheme in which criminals advertise non-existent projects on TikTok, Instagram, YouTube and other platforms using deepfake videos of well-known people and fake 'AI' investment platforms promising very high passive income: 'Kaspi AI' with Mikhail Lomtadze, 'Quantum AI' with Elon Musk, 'TON' with Pavel Durov, and 'people's investments' in KazMunayGas or Gazprom fronted by news presenters from Khabar 24, KTK and Channel One. The office said 119 such cases had been registered across the country in the previous one and a half months. Its example: in September 2026 a woman from Taldykorgan saw an Instagram advertisement offering high returns from share trading, left her details through the link, was contacted by the fraudsters and, following their instructions, transferred more than 7 million tenge to third-party accounts; the money and supposed dividends appeared in a fake wallet that she could not withdraw from. A pre-trial investigation is under way. The office urged people not to trust guaranteed-return offers or transfer money to strangers.

Core concern Medium reported severity Investigation Opened

AI involvement reported · Causal attribution supported · 5 sources, 1 underlying account · Added 20/09/2026

Event date unknownUnited KingdomUnidentified video tool

Ards and North Down, Northern Ireland: a person lost £250,000 to an investment fraud that began with an AI-generated video of a well-known financial personality

On 7 September 2026 the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) said a person in the Ards and North Down area had lost £250,000 in what it called a 'sophisticated and substantial' investment fraud. The victim first saw what appeared to be an AI-generated online video featuring a well-known personality from the financial sector promoting an investment with significant returns. After investing a small amount the victim was contacted on WhatsApp and encouraged to pay more, persuaded to open multiple online accounts, to allow the fraudsters remote access to a computer 'to assist with the investment', to borrow money to keep investing, and finally to make further payments to 'release' funds supposedly held in the investment. The PSNI did not name the personality; BBC News NI noted that fabricated endorsements of financial experts such as Martin Lewis, Peter Jones and Steven Bartlett circulate online.

Core concern High reported severity Investigation Opened

AI involvement reported · Causal attribution supported · 3 sources, 1 underlying account · Added 18/09/2026

Cases may have several effects and sources. Mixed accounts qualify when they include a reported harm or adverse experience. People are counted within individual cases where sources support a number; we do not publish a collection-wide total of distinct people.

A source’s existence, the experience it reports and AI’s causal role are separate questions. A lawsuit records allegations unless a subsequent finding establishes them.

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Last dataset update: 05/10/2026. Dataset available under CC BY 4.0.