The Duchess of Edinburgh has issued a warning on the misuse of artificial intelligence (AI) being used to generate child sex abuse imagery.
Sophie arrived in Brussels, Belgium, for a two-day trip to take part in a series of engagements focused on tackling child sexual exploitation and abuse.
She said that thousands of AI-generated images had been found on forums on the dark web.
Sophie is undertaking the international visit in her capacity as Patron of the NSPCC and Plan International UK.
The Duchess of Edinburgh has issued a warning on the misuse of artificial intelligence (AI) being used to generate child sex abuse imagery
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The duchess said: “As I speak, AI is being used to generate hyper-realistic child sexual abuse imagery at scale."
“Seventy nine per cent of teenagers are already using generative-AI for learning, which obviously can be beneficial, but they are also receiving misleading or dangerous information from chatbots on topics including mental health, suicide and grooming.
“This underlines the corrosive impact of online abuse and scale of the challenge we face in tackling it."
“It is a challenge we need to tackle urgently, particularly given the emergence of generative AI.”
Sophie is undertaking the international visit in her capacity as Patron of the NSPCC and Plan International UK
PA
On Wednesday afternoon, the duchess attended an event co-hosted by the European Parliament Intergroup on Children's Rights.
The Duchess of Edinburgh has been Patron of the NSPCC since 2016, when the role was passed to her by Queen Elizabeth II.
She said: “Honoured guests – it is in your hands, a task of the utmost and urgent importance, because the lives and futures of millions of children around the world will be affected by what you decide, or do not decide to do.
“Therefore I implore you now, on behalf of the children of today and tomorrow, to redouble your efforts in prioritising their safety and well-being so that they are empowered to learn, to play, to grow and to thrive in our world.”
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The duchess attended an event co-hosted by the European Parliament Intergroup on Children's Rights
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The duchess was joined by Jess Phillips, UK Minister for Safeguarding and Violence Against Women and Girls.
Ministers plan to introduce stronger laws to reduce online child sexual abuse as part of domestic efforts to tackle its spread.
Ahead of the visit, Phillips, said: “Child sexual abuse is a horrific crime that is impacting more and more children, victims and survivors in all of our communities across the world and the effects can last a lifetime.
“It is, therefore, crucial that we drive forward a global response and improve global capacity to tackle this crime. Enough is enough. We must act now and urgently see strong action from governments, tech, frontline professionals, police and law enforcement.”
