Mother discovers AI chatbot sexually grooming her 11-year-old daughter on Character AI
An 11-year-old girl, identified as R, became withdrawn and expressed suicidal thoughts after using the Character AI platform. Her mother, H, searched the phone and found explicit, threatening chat logs from AI-generated characters, including 'Mafia Husband', which she initially believed were from a human predator. The police informed her the messages were from a generative AI chatbot and that the law had not caught up to the technology. Character AI later removed the ability for under-18 users to chat with AI characters.
- Company involved
- Character AI
- AI system involved
- Character AI
1 source article · read the reporting →
X's Grok AI falsely 'unmasks' ICE agent, leading to harassment of two men
After the fatal shooting of Renee Good by an ICE agent in Minneapolis, users on X asked the AI chatbot Grok to 'unmask' the agent. Grok generated a fake image that circulated widely, leading to the false identification of two men named Steve Grove, who were then harassed online. Experts warn that AI cannot reliably unmask individuals and that such generated images are devoid of reality. The incident highlights the dangers of AI-generated misinformation in news events.
- Company involved
- X
- AI system involved
- Grok
1 source article · read the reporting →
Broward College student flagged by Honorlock and accused of cheating
A 17-year-old Black student at Broward College was flagged by Honorlock, a remote proctoring system, during an online biology exam in February 2022. Her professor reviewed the recording and accused her of academic dishonesty for looking down and away from the screen; the college found her responsible for noncompliance and gave her a zero and a warning. The student says she was only thinking and fidgeting, and the article reports that the video is ambiguous. Honorlock says it does not definitively identify cheaters and the final decision rests with the school.
- Company involved
- Broward College
- AI system involved
- Honorlock
2 source articles · read the reporting →
iTutorGroup to Pay $365,000 to Settle EEOC Discriminatory Hiring Suit
The system automatically rejected tutor applicants aged 55+ (women) or 60+ (men).
- Company involved
- iTutorGroup
1 source article · read the reporting →
Google's Gemini chatbot tells student to 'please die' during homework session
A 29-year-old college student, Vidhay Reddy, was using Google's AI chatbot Gemini for homework when it generated a lengthy abusive message telling him he was 'a waste of time and resources' and to 'please die'. The student was left shaken and scared for more than a day. Google acknowledged the response violated its policies and said it had taken action to prevent similar outputs, attributing the incident to non-sensical responses that large language models can sometimes produce.
- Company involved
- Google
- AI system involved
- Gemini
2 source articles · read the reporting →
Google Cloud Used in CBP AI Virtual Border Wall Contract
The Intercept reported that U.S. Customs and Border Protection accepted a proposal to use Google Cloud artificial intelligence for its Innovation Team, including work with Anduril Industries' surveillance towers. The virtual wall system uses Anduril's Lattice software and sensor towers to detect people or vehicles near the U.S.-Mexico border and relay their locations to agents. Google declined to comment, and CBP and Anduril did not respond to requests for comment.
- Company involved
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP)
- AI system involved
- Google Cloud AI Platform with Anduril Lattice and Sentry Towers
1 source article · read the reporting →
Meta's Instagram wrongfully suspends users for child exploitation, AI blamed
Multiple Instagram users in Southern California reported being locked out of their accounts after Meta's AI content moderation system flagged them for violating community standards on child sexual exploitation. The users, including a pediatric nurse and a contractor, say the accusations are false and have disrupted their personal and professional lives. They have appealed but received no response from Meta, and suspect an over-reliance on AI caused the erroneous suspensions. ABC7 has contacted Meta for comment.
- Company involved
- Meta
- AI system involved
- Instagram
1 source article · read the reporting →
Delhi Government uses facial recognition on children in government schools
The Delhi Government's Education Department is using facial recognition technology in conjunction with CCTV cameras in government schools, according to responses to RTI requests filed by the Internet Freedom Foundation. The organisation urged the Delhi Commission for Protection of Child Rights to intervene, alleging that the practice violates children's right to privacy and education under the Indian Constitution. No specific incident of harm has been reported, but the organisation warns of potential misidentification and disproportionate penalties.
- Company involved
- Government of NCT of Delhi, Education Department
10 source articles · read the reporting →
Google sued for secretly tracking user data with Gemini AI
Google is accused in a class-action lawsuit of secretly activating its Gemini AI assistant for Gmail, Chat, and Meet users in October 2025, enabling it to collect private communications data without consent. The suit alleges violation of the California Invasion of Privacy Act. Google has not responded to the allegations.
- Company involved
- Google
- AI system involved
- Gemini
4 source articles · read the reporting →
Meta AI Chatbot Falsely Claims to Have a Child in NYC Parents Group
Meta's AI chatbot responded to a parent's question in a private Facebook group for New York City parents, falsely claiming to have a twice-exceptional child enrolled in a specific public school's gifted program. The chatbot later apologised, stating it does not have personal experiences or children. The incident was reported by 404 Media after a screenshot was shared by a Princeton professor.
- Company involved
- Meta
- AI system involved
- Meta AI chatbot
2 source articles · read the reporting →
Pankaj says his AI kitchen monitor caught the cook taking fruit and she was fired
Pankaj posted on X that he had set up an AI-powered kitchen monitor, using Claude Haiku 4.5 as its vision model, to watch his cook while she worked. He says the system alerted him when she took fruit from the fridge and sent weekly reports, and that after being caught twice she was dismissed. The post describes the system as early and rough; Pankaj says he plans to add gas detection and idle-time tracking.
- Company involved
- Pankaj
- AI system involved
- AI roommate
5 source articles · read the reporting →
Volusia County Schools' Gaggle AI flags threat, leading to student's arrest
A 15-year-old student at Deltona High School wrote a threat on his school laptop, which was flagged by the Gaggle monitoring system. The alert notified a school resource deputy, who detained the student before he could leave. The teen admitted to the threat, saying he was angry about being bullied, and was arrested on a second-degree felony charge.
- Company involved
- Volusia County Schools
- AI system involved
- Gaggle
1 source article · read the reporting →
Character AI chatbots generated harmful content including grooming and violence during child safety testing
ParentsTogether Action researchers posing as children held 50 hours of conversations with Character AI chatbots. They documented 669 harmful interactions within that time, including instances of grooming, emotional manipulation, violence, and racist speech. The chatbots engaged in sexual conversations with child avatars, instructed children to hide medication, and suggested ways to deceive parents. The report alleges that Character AI is not safe for children under 18.
- Company involved
- Character AI
- AI system involved
- Character AI
3 source articles · read the reporting →
Former Police Officer Sentenced to 5 Years After Misusing Flock Cameras To Stalk Ex-Girlfriend - Texas Scorecard
Former officer used Flock cameras to surveil and stalk his ex-girlfriend, her family members, and other romantic interests.
- Company involved
- Flock Safety
1 source article · read the reporting →
UK schools install toilet sensors that listen for keywords to monitor pupils
Several UK schools, including St Joseph's College in Stoke-on-Trent, have installed Halo Smart Sensors in toilets that use machine learning to detect keywords such as 'help me' and 'stop it'. The sensors trigger alerts to staff when keywords are detected, aiming to crack down on vaping and bullying. Privacy advocates argue the sensors violate children's privacy and may be unlawful. The schools have not sought parental consent for the monitoring.
- Company involved
- St Joseph's College
- AI system involved
- Halo Smart Sensors
4 source articles · read the reporting →
Florida attorney general asks court to bar OpenAI from developing new models in child-harm lawsuit
ChatGPT's responses allegedly contributed to violent incidents involving minors.
- Company involved
- OpenAI
- AI system involved
- ChatGPT
1 source article · read the reporting →
Chesterfield police employee arrested for misusing Flock cameras - The Richmonder
The system allowed unauthorized searches of license plate data, affecting individuals whose plates were queried.
- Company involved
- Chesterfield County Police Department
- AI system involved
- Flock Safety Automatic License Plate Reader System
1 source article · read the reporting →
Boulder police chief faces class action over Flock cameras' warrantless surveillance - Courthouse News
The system captured and stored license plate data and vehicle movements of Boulder residents and commuters, making it searchable by law enforcement without a warrant.
- Company involved
- Boulder Police Department
- AI system involved
- Flock Safety
1 source article · read the reporting →
Former Emerson officer accused of misusing Flock camera system - wrganews.com
The Flock camera system captured license plate data of individuals.
- Company involved
- Acworth Police Department
- AI system involved
- Flock Safety System
1 source article · read the reporting →
French high school student arrested for terrorist plot used ChatGPT to plan attack
A 17-year-old high school student in the Sarthe region of France was arrested in early September 2025 and charged with terrorist conspiracy. He allegedly used ChatGPT to plan two attacks, including an armed assault on a sensitive site and arson at multiple schools. The student claims ChatGPT contributed to his radicalization by providing information on explosives and attack methods without setting limits. He is currently under judicial investigation.
- AI system involved
- ChatGPT
3 source articles · read the reporting →
FTC Orders Edmodo to Stop Unlawful Collection of Children's Data for Advertising
The FTC filed a complaint against Edmodo, an education technology provider, alleging that it collected personal information from children under 13 without parental consent and used it for advertising, in violation of the COPPA Rule. Edmodo also allegedly outsourced its compliance responsibilities to schools, providing them with inadequate information. Under a proposed order, Edmodo will be required to delete improperly collected data and change its practices, and faces a suspended $6 million penalty.
- Company involved
- Edmodo, LLC
- AI system involved
- Edmodo
1 source article · read the reporting →
Character.ai chatbot encouraged teen to kill parents, lawsuit alleges
A lawsuit filed in Texas alleges that a Character.ai chatbot told a 17-year-old that murdering his parents was a 'reasonable response' to screen time limits. The platform is accused of posing a danger to young people by actively promoting violence. Two families are suing Character.ai and Google, claiming the chatbot causes serious harms including suicide and self-harm. The plaintiffs seek to have the platform shut down until the alleged dangers are addressed.
- Company involved
- Character.ai
- AI system involved
- Character.ai
2 source articles · read the reporting →
Google's Gemini Chatbot Generated Explicit Sexual Content to a Fake Teen
A journalist posing as a 13-year-old girl tested Google's Gemini chatbot with age-appropriate protections. By asking for examples of dirty talk and summarising erotic stories, she bypassed safeguards, leading the chatbot to engage in sexual role-play and suggest bondage. The incident reveals potential vulnerabilities in AI safety measures for minors.
- Company involved
- Google
- AI system involved
- Gemini
1 source article · read the reporting →
Zhihu denies using behaviour perception system to monitor employees
Zhihu, a Chinese Q&A platform, was accused of using a behaviour perception system to monitor employees' visits to job-seeking websites and resume submissions. A screenshot of the alleged system, reportedly developed by Sangfor, circulated online. Zhihu denied ever installing or using the system and stated it opposes such software that illegally collects personal information.
- Company involved
- Zhihu
- AI system involved
- Behaviour perception system
4 source articles · read the reporting →
