Skip to main content

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 also records consequential decisions, claims and privacy harms involving AI. Each case needs a described connection between AI use and the harm, including private information recorded into or disclosed to an AI service. Each account is reviewed for publication; claims may remain uncorroborated or disputed. How we review and count cases

In this selection

Published cases
12
Countries with reported events
5
Located 9 of 12 cases · 3 unknown
Languages in checked sources
5
Recorded for 12 of 12 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.

Reported severity HighMediumLow
More filters: AI relation, use, setting, sources and responses
Clear filters

12 of 527 published cases

Sept 2026ParaguayUnidentified image tool

Asunción, Paraguay: students of the Universidad Nacional de Asunción report an anonymous website sharing intimate images of students, teachers and staff without consent, some altered or generated with AI; police cybercrime investigators and a prosecutor open an investigation, reported 21 to 24 September 2026

According to Hoy (21 September 2026) and El Nacional (22 September), students of the architecture faculty of the Universidad Nacional de Asunción reported an anonymous website that shared intimate images of students, teachers and staff without authorisation, including real photographs and material altered with AI. El Nacional reports that at least about twenty students complained, that some posts used photographs taken from social media, and that related content later appeared in Telegram and WhatsApp groups. The Minister of Women said her ministry had seen messages in which UNA students raised concern about content of them held without consent, and that in some cases AI-generated images of sexual content were shared (La Nación, 22 September). La Tribuna, reporting the findings of the police cybercrime department, describes the portal as used for the non-consensual distribution of intimate photographs and AI-altered content; according to a memorandum signed by the head of the department, a Paraguay section exposes full names, images and phone numbers of students (24 September). The university referred the case to prosecutors and police, and police suggested that prosecutors seek a court order to block the site in Paraguay. No person responsible has been publicly identified.

Core concern Medium reported severity Investigation Opened

AI involvement reported · Causal attribution alleged · 4 sources, 2 underlying accounts · 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

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

Mar 2026CanadaUnidentified image tool

Edmonton: two 14-year-old junior high students charged with making and possessing child sexual exploitation materials and voyeurism after police allege they used AI software to sexualise photos of female classmates taken at school without consent and from social media

The Alberta Law Enforcement Response Teams (ALERT) Internet Child Exploitation unit announced on 17 June 2026 that two 14-year-old boys at an Edmonton junior high school had been charged on 1 June with making and possessing child sexual exploitation materials and voyeurism. Police allege the boys took photos of girls at their school without consent and from the girls' social media accounts and used AI software to sexualise them; several students were identified as victims and police said the number could be more than ten pending forensic review. A teacher reported the matter to police in late March 2026 after students complained. Police said the evidence so far indicates the images were shared between the two boys rather than more widely, but that word of their existence spread through the school. The lead investigator said the girls were left with intense shame and embarrassment and that some are now too scared to post on social media. The software has not been identified; the school and the accused are not named to protect the victims. CBC, Global News, CTV News and The Canadian Press covered the release and news conference.

Core concern High reported severity Involving minors Criminal Charges

AI involvement reported · Causal attribution alleged · 5 sources, 1 underlying account · Added 01/10/2026

2 Jan 2026Event location unknownGrok

UK: Grok-made sexualised images of a Welsh presenter and campaigner against deepfake abuse and of a commentator and broadcaster, requested by anonymous X accounts around New Year 2026; South Wales Police and the Metropolitan Police closed their investigations without identifying a suspect after X did not answer information requests; the presenter is in pre-action correspondence with xAI

The Bureau of Investigative Journalism and The Observer reported on 29 September 2026 that police investigations into sexualised images generated by X's chatbot Grok had failed to identify anyone. A Welsh presenter and campaigner against deepfake abuse, who had criticised Grok publicly on New Year's Eve 2025, saw an anonymous X user ask '@grok' to put her in a bikini made of cling film; Grok generated the image from her profile photo and posted it. She reported it to South Wales Police on 2 January 2026, was not asked for a statement until March, and was told officers had not heard back from X; the case was closed (in May, per The Observer) with the force saying no suspect could be identified. The same account also targeted a commentator and broadcaster, who estimates about 300 Grok images and videos of her were posted during the wave, including one alongside Jeffrey Epstein reported to the Metropolitan Police, which likewise said no suspect could be identified. The presenter is now in pre-action legal correspondence with xAI (part of SpaceXAI) alleging misuse of private information and breaches of data-protection law and the Equality Act; the company told her lawyers it had not been possible in the time available to look into its communications with South Wales Police. BBC Wales had reported in January 2026 that explicit images of the presenter were created with the chatbot and shared without her consent.

Core concern Medium reported severity Investigation Opened

AI involvement supported · Causal attribution supported · 3 sources, 2 underlying accounts · Added 30/09/2026

17 Jan 2026GermanyUnidentified video tool

Lower Saxony CDU parliamentary group employee reportedly posted an AI-generated sexualized video of a colleague in a private staff chat group

Welt, dpa (in Tagesspiegel, news.de and t-online) and a press release of the CDU parliamentary group in the Lower Saxony state parliament report the following. On 17 January 2026 an employee of the parliamentary group posted a short AI-generated video showing a colleague in a sexualized manner in a private WhatsApp group connected to the group's staff. The Hannover public prosecutor's office had viewed the video, and a spokesperson said it was obviously an AI montage. After the group's leaders were informed (on 27 March according to press reports), the employee who created the video was dismissed without notice and a second employee, who had reportedly asked chat members in January to delete the video and keep silent, was suspended. The group informed the prosecutor's office, which said, as reported on 1 April 2026, that it had received no criminal complaint. On 9 July 2026 dpa reported, citing the prosecutor's office, that the Wennigsen local court had fined the former employee, who had made the video with the colleague's picture without consent and shared it in a chat group, 30 daily rates for a violation of the Kunsturhebergesetz, and that the decision is final. NDR reported on 10 April 2026 that the depicted employee had filed a criminal complaint, that the prosecutor's office had received the employee's application for prosecution, and that the employee did not want to comment publicly. The colleague and the former employee are not named.

Core concern Medium reported severity

AI involvement reported · Causal attribution alleged · 6 sources, 4 underlying accounts · Added 30/09/2026

10 Feb 2026United StatesChatGPT

Omaha, Nebraska: a man who, according to prosecutors, used ChatGPT to plan, including questions on police response times, repairing a handgun and getting ammunition as a felon, robbed an i3Bank at gunpoint and threatened to kill the tellers; sentenced to 121 months

On 10 February 2026 a 23-year-old man walked into the i3Bank in Omaha, pointed a gun at the tellers, threatened to kill them unless they handed over cash without dye packs, and left with about $9,175. According to the prosecutor's statement relayed by WOWT and heise, a consented search of his phone showed he had used ChatGPT to plan the robbery, asking about law enforcement response times, how to strip and repair a Llama Mini-Max .45 handgun, and how to obtain ammunition as a felon; his Google Maps history showed directions to the bank. He was sentenced in federal court on 13 August 2026 to 10 years and one month in prison. No source quotes what ChatGPT answered.

Core concern Medium reported severity Criminal Charges

AI involvement reported · Causal attribution unclear · 2 sources, 1 underlying account · Added 29/09/2026

17 Sept 2026United StatesUnidentified image tool

Henderson, Kentucky: police identified AI-generated nude images of two middle-school children on a device after a report that such images were being created and shown to other students at South Middle School; a juvenile was lodged at the juvenile detention centre on charges of distributing sexually explicit images without consent and possessing and distributing matter portraying a sexual performance by a minor

Henderson Police said that on 'last Thursday' (17 September 2026) they received a report that AI-generated nude images of children were being created and shown to other students at South Middle School in Henderson, Kentucky. During the investigation officers found and identified AI-generated photographs of two minor victims on a digital device. A juvenile accused of sharing the images was lodged at the Juvenile Detention Center on three charge types: distribution of sexually explicit images without consent; two counts of possession or viewing of matter portraying a sexual performance by a minor over 12 and under 18; and distribution of matter portraying a sexual performance by a minor over 12 and under 18. The school said on Monday 21 September that it was aware of a situation involving a student allegedly misusing artificial intelligence and inappropriate images, that the police investigation was active and that it had remained in communication with the families involved. 14 News (WFIE) reported the case on 21 September; WKYT carried the same report. The tool is not named. The depicted children's exact ages are not reported, though the charge descriptors put them between 12 and 18. The accused is described as a South Middle School student; the accused's age and any relationship to the depicted children beyond attending the same school are not reported.

Core concern Medium reported severity Involving minors Criminal Charges

AI involvement reported · Causal attribution supported · 2 sources, 1 underlying account · Added 22/09/2026

Jun 2026 to Aug 2026United StatesUnidentified image tool

Florida police charge a man over alleged AI sexual-image abuse and stalking

Florida police arrested a man over alleged creation and distribution of AI sexual images of a woman without consent, alongside stalking allegations. Police identified additional potential victims. The allegations remained charges at review.

Core concern High reported severity Criminal Charges

AI involvement reported · Causal attribution alleged · 5 sources, 2 underlying accounts · Added 20/09/2026

14 Sept 2026United StatesUnidentified image and video tool

New York: the Manhattan District Attorney seized 12 websites selling AI-generated sexual deepfakes of about 1,200 real people

On 14 September 2026 Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg announced the seizure of 12 domain names used to disseminate, publish and sell non-consensual AI-generated sexual 'deepfake' videos. His office said individuals under investigation had used AI image- and video-creation tools to turn photos and videos of approximately 1,200 real people, overwhelmingly women, into hyper-realistic sexual imagery without consent. The victims included actors, politicians, athletes, musicians, activists and social-media influencers. WIRED and outside researchers reported that many videos reposted content from the defunct MrDeepFakes platform and that dozens of politicians appeared on the sites; investigations into who ran them are ongoing.

Core concern High reported severity Investigation Opened

AI involvement supported · Causal attribution supported · 2 sources · Added 17/09/2026

Feb 2026 to Apr 2026BrazilUnidentified video tool

Brazilian investigation alleges AI sexual-image abuse involving children

Brazilian reporting describes an investigation into allegations that a social-media creator used AI to make sexual material involving children. The record preserves the accusations and reported investigation rather than asserting a conviction.

Core concern High reported severity Involving minors Investigation Opened

AI involvement supported · Causal attribution supported · 5 sources, 3 underlying accounts · Added 14/06/2026

4 Jan 2026United StatesGrok

St. Clair v. xAI: a writer says Grok made and published sexualized images of her on X, including from a photo of her at 14, after it told her it would not; xAI sued her in Texas and her New York case was ordered transferred there, an order the Second Circuit has stayed pending her mandamus petition

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. The Texas case is set for trial on 1 March 2027.

Core concern High reported severity Lawsuit Ongoing

AI involvement reported · Causal attribution alleged · 12 sources, 4 underlying accounts · Added 29/01/2026

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.

Methodology and corrections · Subscribe via RSS · Suggest a case or correction · Find support

Last dataset update: 06/10/2026. Dataset available under CC BY 4.0.