AI & DEEPFAKE

AI-generated nude images of Taylor Swift prompt calls for legal change

Taylor Swift during a concert in 2015.

Searches related to Taylor Swift and AI have been halted on the platform 'X' while US politicians seek to amend the law to criminalize the distribution of deepfake and AI-generated images of celebrities.

With AI models and features for generative AI, it has become easy to create so-called deepfake images, videos, or sequences that look real. Camera & Image has previously written about deepfake clips of Tom Cruise, Tom Holland and Robert Downey Jr, something that just a few years ago required some knowledge to achieve good results. 

Now, as more and more people can create fictitious material through text – something that singer Taylor Swift has experienced in recent days – it becomes increasingly problematic for celebrities around the world. Over the weekend, all searches related to AI and Taylor Swift on platform X, formerly Twitter, were halted to prevent the spread of AI-generated pornographic images created of the famous singer. One photo, for example, received 47 million views before it was deleted.

Morelle further states that the issue is not new, but that women have been subjected to this for several years – however, it is now possible to create deepfake media both more easily and cheaply.

The White House Press Secretary, Katrine Jean-Pierre, also tells the Financial Times that she finds the spread of the singer's images alarming: "Even though social media companies make their own independent decisions about content management, we believe they have an important role to play in upholding their own rules".