🔗 Share this article

Technology companies and child protection organizations will be granted permission to evaluate whether artificial intelligence tools can produce child exploitation images under new British laws.

Significant Rise in AI-Generated Harmful Material

The announcement coincided with revelations from a protection monitoring body 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 Regulatory Structure

Under the amendments, the government will allow approved AI developers and child safety groups to examine AI models – the foundational technology for conversational AI and image generators – and ensure they have sufficient protective measures to prevent them from creating images of child sexual abuse.

"Ultimately about stopping abuse before it happens," declared Kanishka Narayan, noting: "Experts, under rigorous conditions, can now detect the danger in AI systems early."

Addressing Legal Obstacles

The changes have been introduced because it is against the law to produce and possess CSAM, meaning that AI developers and others cannot create such content as part of a testing regime. Previously, authorities had to delay action until AI-generated CSAM was published online before addressing it.

This law is designed to averting that issue by enabling to stop the creation of those images at source.

Legislative Structure

The amendments are being added by the government as revisions to the crime and policing bill, which is also establishing a prohibition on owning, creating or sharing AI models designed to create exploitative content.

Real-World Consequences

This recently, the minister toured the London headquarters of Childline and heard a simulated conversation to counsellors involving a report of AI-based abuse. The interaction depicted a teenager requesting help after facing extortion using a explicit AI-generated image of himself, constructed using AI.

"When I learn about children experiencing blackmail online, it is a source of extreme anger in me and justified concern amongst families," he said.

Alarming Data

A leading internet monitoring foundation reported that cases of AI-generated abuse material – such as webpages that may contain multiple images – had significantly increased so far this year.

Cases of the most severe content – the gravest form of abuse – increased from 2,621 images or videos to 3,086.

• Girls were predominantly victimized, accounting for 94% of illegal AI depictions in 2025
• Depictions of infants to toddlers increased from five in 2024 to 92 in 2025

Sector Response

The law change could "constitute a vital step to ensure AI tools are secure before they are released," stated the head of the online safety organization.

"AI tools have made it so victims can be victimised repeatedly with just a simple actions, giving criminals the capability to make possibly limitless quantities of advanced, photorealistic child sexual abuse material," she added. "Content which further commodifies victims' trauma, and renders children, particularly female children, less safe both online and offline."

Counseling Interaction Data

The children's helpline also released information of counselling sessions where AI has been referenced. AI-related risks mentioned in the sessions include:

• Using AI to rate weight, body and appearance
• AI assistants discouraging young people from talking to safe adults about abuse
• Facing harassment online with AI-generated content
• Online blackmail using AI-manipulated images

During April and September this year, the helpline delivered 367 support interactions where AI, conversational AI and associated topics were mentioned, four times as many as in the same period last year.

Half of the mentions of AI in the 2025 sessions were connected with psychological wellbeing and wellness, encompassing utilizing chatbots for assistance and AI therapeutic applications.