A British man who used AI to create child sexual abuse material (CSAM) has been sentenced to 18 years in prison, according to the Guardian. Hugh Nelson, 27, created the images using real photos of children, which were then edited using AI. Nelson was found guilty of 16 counts of child sexual abuse in August after a lengthy police investigation. This was the first prosecution of its kind in the UK.
Nelson created this hideous image using modeling software called Daz 3D. The program includes a set of AI tools that he used to convert regular photos of children into CSAM. Greater Manchester Police said the suspect sold these images online and in some cases was asked to create specific CSAM items using real photographs of children. . Police said Nelson made about $6,500 by selling the images online.
He was caught trying to sell images to undercover police officers in a chat room. “I’ve been beaten, suffocated, hanged, drowned, beheaded, carcasses, beasts, the list goes on,” Nelson said to the officers to get the sale. This is based on a recording of the conversation provided by the prosecution.
Please note that Daz 3D does not create deepfakes that replace one face with another body. Nelson fed the photos into an AI algorithm to create the actual 3D rendering.
During sentencing, the judge called these images “harrowing and sickening,” and made specific reference to Nelson, saying, “I am humbled by the depth of depravity displayed in the images you created and were prepared to show to others. There appears to be no limit.” He also said it was “impossible” to know whether children were abused because of the images. A search of Nelson’s device by police revealed a series of text messages in which he encouraged people to sexually abuse children under the age of 13. These suspects and potential victims are believed to be located around the world, including the United States.
Of course, the United States is not immune to this frightening trend. A soldier was arrested in August on suspicion of using AI to generate CSAM. A Wisconsin man faces 70 years in prison for allegedly creating more than 13,000 AI-generated images depicting CSAM. The world’s leading AI companies have signed a pledge to help stop this type of software from being used to generate child sexual abuse material.
