Agency Report

Elon Musk’s artificial intelligence chatbot, Grok, has come under intense scrutiny following complaints that it was used to turn images of children and women into erotic content, prompting concerns from users, regulators and prosecutors in several countries.

Grok said on Friday that it was rushing to address flaws in its safety systems after the allegations emerged, admitting shortcomings in the platform’s safeguards.
“We’ve identified lapses in safeguards and are urgently fixing them,” Grok said in a post on X, formerly Twitter.
“CSAM (Child Sexual Abuse Material) is illegal and prohibited.”
The complaints surfaced shortly after Grok rolled out an “edit image” feature in late December. The tool allows users to modify images posted on the platform, but critics say it was quickly misused to partially or completely remove clothing from images of women and, in some cases, children.

The development triggered widespread outrage on X, with users warning that such functionality could facilitate the creation and distribution of illegal and abusive content.
Grok’s developer, xAI, which is owned by Musk, responded to an AFP inquiry with a brief, automated message that stated: “the mainstream media lies.”
However, Grok itself responded directly to an X user who raised concerns that a company in the United States could face criminal prosecution for knowingly facilitating or failing to prevent the production or circulation of child sexual abuse material.

The controversy has also attracted the attention of authorities outside the United States. Media reports in India said on Friday that government officials had demanded that X urgently provide details of the steps it is taking to remove “obscene, nude, indecent, and sexually suggestive content” generated by Grok without the consent of individuals depicted in such images.
In France, the Paris public prosecutor’s office has expanded an ongoing investigation into X to include new allegations that Grok was being used to generate and disseminate child pornography.

The initial investigation into the social media platform was opened in July following reports that X’s algorithm was being manipulated for the purposes of foreign interference.
Grok has faced repeated criticism in recent months over controversial outputs, including statements related to the war in Gaza, the India-Pakistan conflict, antisemitic remarks, and the spread of misinformation following a deadly shooting in Australia.

The latest allegations have intensified calls for stronger safeguards and regulatory oversight of generative artificial intelligence tools, particularly those capable of manipulating images, amid growing fears about their potential misuse and the risks posed to vulnerable individuals.