A British woman whose photographs were manipulated to create sexually explicit AI-generated deepfakes has called for stronger safeguards around artificial intelligence, warning of the potential harm caused by misuse of increasingly accessible technology.
Georgia Horton discovered that photographs taken from her social media accounts had been altered without her knowledge or consent to produce explicit fake images.
The person responsible, her former college friend Ethan Orchard, was sentenced in July to three years and four months in prison for creating and sharing sexual images involving Horton and two other women.
Orchard, from Southsea, was also found to have encouraged other men online to make violent and sexually explicit comments about the women.
Speaking to the BBC, Horton described the experience as deeply distressing, particularly as the online material and discussions surrounding the women became increasingly disturbing.
Horton, who attended college with Orchard in Hampshire and had previously considered him a friend, is now speaking publicly about her experience to highlight what she describes as the darker side of artificial intelligence.
She warned that while AI is often viewed as entertaining or harmless, the technology can become dangerous when used to target individuals.
The case has added to growing concerns over AI-generated sexual imagery, particularly the ease with which realistic explicit images can be created using photographs of people without their knowledge or consent.