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Explicit AI images of Taylor Swift Goes Viral, X Blocks Searches for Her
X, formerly known as Twitter, has blocked searches for Taylor Swift after sexually explicit AI-generated images of the singer circulated on the social media platform. The fake images of Swift were viewed millions of times, prompting White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre to call the deepfake images “alarming.”
The issue caught the attention of the White House, who on Friday called the spread of the AI-generated photos “alarming.” The explicit content, which appears to have been made using AI, was reportedly live on X for nearly 19 hours before the account that posted the images was suspended.
Navigating the Thin Line Between Freedom of Speech and Content Control Amidst AI-Generated Controversies
X CEO Linda Yaccarino has said X embraces an approach called “freedom of speech, not reach” meaning it has zero tolerance for illegal content, but won’t ban content that’s “lawful, but awful.”
However, X blocked searches for Taylor Swift after the explicit AI-generated images of the singer went viral. Searches for Swift’s name on the microblogging platform yielded the error message: “Something went wrong. Try reloading.”
X’s head of business operations Joe Benarroch said it was a “temporary action” to prioritize safety.”Our teams are actively removing all identified images and taking appropriate actions against the accounts involved,” Benarroch said. “This is a temporary action and done with an abundance of caution as we prioritize safety on this issue.”
Searches for Swift and some related terms on Meta-owned Instagram also did not return results, instead showing a message that the search terms used were “sometimes associated with activities of intimate imagery of real people.”
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X’s Crackdown on Non-consensual Nudity and the Ongoing Struggle to Safeguard Online Spaces
Deepfake-detecting group Reality Defender said it tracked several non consensual pornographic materials which spread to “millions and millions” of users by the time some were taken down. The images were mostly found on X, though some were found on Meta-owned Facebook and other social media platforms.
The photos prompted X to release a statement on Friday, saying that posting non-consensual nudity on the platform is a violation of its policies.The issue of deep fakes has been a growing concern in recent years, with the technology becoming more advanced and accessible.
Deep Fakes are AI-generated images or videos that are manipulated to make it appear as though someone is doing or saying something they never did. The technology has been used to create fake celebrity pornographic videos and to spread misinformation.
X’s decision to block searches for Taylor Swift is a step towards combating the spread of deep fakes on social media platforms. While social media companies make their own independent decisions about content management, they have an important role to play in enforcing their own rules to prevent the spread of harmful content.
