🔗 Share this article

Technology companies and child safety organizations will receive permission to evaluate whether artificial intelligence tools can produce child exploitation material under new British laws.

Substantial Rise in AI-Generated Harmful Content

The declaration came as findings from a safety watchdog showing that reports of AI-generated CSAM have more than doubled in the past year, growing from 199 in 2024 to 426 in 2025.

Updated Legal Structure

Under the amendments, the authorities will permit approved AI developers and child protection groups to examine AI systems – the foundational technology for conversational AI and image generators – and ensure they have sufficient safeguards to stop them from creating depictions of child exploitation.

"Fundamentally about preventing abuse before it happens," stated Kanishka Narayan, noting: "Specialists, under strict conditions, can now detect the risk in AI models promptly."

Tackling Legal Challenges

The changes have been implemented because it is against the law to create and own CSAM, meaning that AI developers and other parties cannot generate such content as part of a testing regime. Until now, authorities had to wait until AI-generated CSAM was published online before dealing with it.

This law is aimed at preventing that issue by enabling to halt the production of those images at their origin.

Legislative Framework

The changes are being added by the government as revisions to the criminal justice legislation, which is also establishing a prohibition on possessing, producing or sharing AI systems developed to create child sexual abuse material.

Real-World Consequences

This recently, the minister toured the London base of a children's helpline and listened to a simulated conversation to advisors featuring a report of AI-based abuse. The interaction depicted a adolescent requesting help after facing extortion using a explicit AI-generated image of himself, created using AI.

"When I hear about children experiencing extortion online, it is a cause of intense anger in me and rightful concern amongst families," he said.

Alarming Statistics

A leading internet monitoring organization stated that cases of AI-generated abuse material – such as online pages that may contain numerous files – had more than doubled so far this year.

Cases of the most severe content – the most serious form of exploitation – increased from 2,621 visual files to 3,086.

• Girls were predominantly victimized, making up 94% of prohibited AI depictions in 2025
• Portrayals of infants to two-year-olds rose from five in 2024 to 92 in 2025

Industry Reaction

The legislative amendment could "constitute a vital step to ensure AI tools are secure before they are launched," commented the head of the online safety foundation.

"Artificial intelligence systems have enabled so victims can be targeted all over again with just a simple actions, giving criminals the ability to make potentially endless quantities of sophisticated, lifelike child sexual abuse material," she added. "Material which further commodifies survivors' trauma, and renders children, especially girls, more vulnerable both online and offline."

Support Interaction Data

The children's helpline also published details of support interactions where AI has been referenced. AI-related harms mentioned in the sessions include:

• Employing AI to evaluate weight, body and appearance
• AI assistants discouraging children from consulting trusted adults about abuse
• Facing harassment online with AI-generated content
• Digital blackmail using AI-faked pictures

During April and September this year, the helpline delivered 367 counselling interactions where AI, chatbots and associated terms were mentioned, significantly more as many as in the same period last year.

Half of the references of AI in the 2025 sessions were related to mental health and wellbeing, including using AI assistants for support and AI therapy applications.