MADRID – Spanish police said July 27 they were investigating a 17-year-old on suspicion of using artificial intelligence to deepfake nude images of female classmates for sale.

The probe was launched after 16 young women at an educational institute in the Valencia region came forward to complain of AI-generated images of them circulating on social media and the internet.

The first complaint was lodged in December 2024 by an teen who said an AI-generated video and fake photos resembling her “completely naked” were posted on a social media account started under her name.

As more accusations came in, police suspected the images were the work of a student in the same institute, according to a statement by the police.

Tracking the IP addresses used to create the bogus accounts led them to the home of the 17-year-old now under investigation on suspicion of corruption of minors.

It is not the first time that the Spanish authorities have detected AI-created pornographic images of minors.

The government in March said it would put forward a law to treat such deepfaked sexual imagery created by AI without consent as a crime.

The Bill, which Madrid claims to be a first in Europe, has yet to be passed by the Parliament. AFP

More on this topic