“Skip to main content “We’ll progress this investigation as a matter of the highest priority, while ensuring we follow due process.” Courtesy of Anna Barclay/Getty Images Grok, the AI chatbot created by xAI, the artificial intelligence company founded by and majority-owned by Elon Musk, last week switched off its image creation and editing function for most users after an”, — write: www.hollywoodreporter.com
Courtesy of Anna Barclay/Getty Images
“Image generation and editing are currently limited to paying subscribers,” Grok replied to users of Musk’s X attempting to create images on Friday. The restriction came amid threats of fines or even an outright ban on X in the UK
On Monday, UK media regulator Ofcom said it was investigating the issue, opening “a formal investigation into X under the UK’s Online Safety Act, to determine whether it has complied with its duties to protect people in the UK from content that is illegal in the UK”
Ofcom described its initial assessment this way: “There have been deeply concerning reports of the Grok AI chatbot account on X being used to create and share undressed images of people – which may amount to intimate image abuse or pornography – and sexualised images of children that may amount to child sexual abuse material (CSAM). As the UK’s independent online safety watchdog, we urgently made contact with X on Monday, 5 January and set a firm deadline of Friday, 9 January for it to explain what steps it has taken to comply with its duties to protect its users in the UK The company responded by the deadline, and we carried out an expedited assessment of available evidence as a matter of urgency.”
What will its investigation examine? “Ofcom has decided to open a formal investigation to establish whether X has failed to comply with its legal obligations under the Online Safety Act – in particular, to assess the risk of people in the UK seeing content that is illegal in the UK, and to carry out an updated risk assessment before making any significant changes to their service; take appropriate steps to prevent people in the UK from seeing ‘priority’ illegal content – including non-consensual intimate images and CSAM; take down illegal content swiftly when they become aware of it; have regard to protecting users from a breach of privacy laws; assess the risk their service poses to UK children, and to carry out an updated risk assessment before making any significant changes to their service; and use highly effective age assurance to protect UK children from viewing pornography.”
“We’ll progress this investigation as a matter of the highest priority, while ensuring we follow due process. As the UK’s independent online safety enforcement agency, it’s important we make sure our investigations are legally robust and fairly decided.”
Keir Starmer, the UK Prime Minister and Labor Party leader, had previously urged X to “get a grip” of a flood of AI-manipulated photos on the social platform that removed clothing or of women and children or put them in sexualized positions, decrying them as “disgraceful” and “disgusting.” In what was seen as a threat of a possible X ban, he emphasized that UK communications regulator Ofcom “has our full support to take action in relation to this.”
The UK’s Online Safety Act gives Ofcom the power to seek court orders to block websites or apps in the country in serious cases. The regulator can also impose fines of up to 10 percent of a company’s global revenue. A year ago, Starmer’s government vowed to make “creating sexually explicit deepfake images a criminal offense” to crack down on “vile online abuse.”
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