A UK man who used AI to create child sexual abuse material (CSAM) has been sentenced to 18 years in prison, . Hugh Nelson, aged 27, created the images using photos of real children, which had been manipulated by AI. Nelson was convicted of 16 counts of child sexual abuse in August, after a lengthy police investigation. This was the first prosecution of its kind in the UK.
Nelson used a modeling software called Daz 3D to create the hideous images. The program has AI tools, which it uses to convert normal photos of children into CSAM. Greater Manchester Police say he sold the images online and was even commissioned on several occasions to carry out CSAM activities using images of real children. Police say Nelson made about $6,500 selling the photos online.
He was caught trying to sell photos to an undercover cop on a chat platform. “I’ve been hit, drowned, hanged, drowned, beheaded, killed, have an animal, the list goes on,” Nelson told the officer to try. This is from the transcript of the interview provided by the prosecutor.
It should be noted that Daz 3D does not create deepfakes, where one face is replaced by another body. Nelson created realistic 3D renderings by feeding images to an AI algorithm.
During his sentencing, the judge called the images “painful and sickening” and addressed Nelson directly, saying “there seems to be no limit to the depth of depravity depicted in the images that you were prepared to make and show to others.” He also said that it is “impossible to know” if children have been abused because of these images. A police search of Nelson’s devices uncovered a series of text messages in which he encouraged people to sexually abuse children under the age of 13. These suspects and potential victims are suspected to be found all over the world, including the US.
The United States, of course, is not immune to this alarming trend. The soldier was suspected of using AI to conduct CSAM. A Wisconsin man faces up to 70 years in prison for allegedly painting CSAM. The world’s leading AI companies are helping to stop this type of software from being used to produce child sexual abuse material.
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