UK watchdogs warn parents over AI nudification apps

UK parents are being urged by the National Crime Agency and the Internet Watch Foundation to consider limiting the visibility of family photos online as predators use AI imaging tools and nudification apps to create child sexual abuse material from ordinary pictures.

The warning follows cases handled by the Report Remove service in which fully clothed teenage selfies were turned into extreme pornography videos after being processed with AI tools. Some under-18s are becoming victims without direct contact with offenders, as images already posted online can be repurposed into realistic abuse material.

The IWF said AI-generated child sexual abuse material found online rose by 14% last year, with 8,029 AI-made images and videos of realistic CSAM identified in 2025. Dan Sexton, the group’s chief technology officer, said analysts are already struggling to distinguish real abuse photos from AI-generated images, complicating efforts to identify children in immediate danger.

The UK government is introducing restrictions on possessing, creating or distributing AI tools designed to generate child sexual abuse material, while giving technology companies and child protection agencies powers to test whether AI systems can produce such images. Sexton called for AI models to be built “safe by design,” as the NCA warned offenders are often early adopters of new technology.