UK investigating X after Grok undressed thousands of women and children

“There are doubts as to whether the Online Safety Act actually has the power to regulate functionality—that means generative AI’s ability to nudify someone’s image,” Caroline Dinenage, chairwoman of the culture, media, and sport committee, told the BBC.

The UK may need to update the law to better explain platforms’ duties to remove or prevent the making and sharing of sexualized deepfakes. In a document defining illegal content, however, Ofcom emphasizes that deepfakes can count as both CSAM and intimate image abuse, suggesting X could face penalties, even if Ofcom cannot require changes to Grok’s functionality.

Ofcom noted that in its view, CSAM does include “AI-generated imagery, deepfakes and other manipulated media,” which “would fall under the category of a ‘pseudo-photograph.’” As Ofcom explained, “If the impression conveyed by a pseudo-photograph is that the person shown is a child, then the photo should be treated as showing a child.”

Similarly, “manipulated images and videos such as deepfakes should be considered within the scope” of intimate image abuse, Ofcom said. “Any photograph or video which appears to depict an intimate situation” that a real person would not want publicly posted should “be treated as a photograph or video actually depicting such a situation.”

Some Grok fans think that the chatbot’s outputs that undress people and put them in skimpy bikinis or underwear isn’t abuse. However, the UK law further details that an “intimate situation” could be an image where a person’s “genitals, buttocks, or breasts” are “covered only with underwear” or “covered only by clothing that is wet or otherwise transparent.”

It’s unclear how long Ofcom may take to reach its decision, but the regulator acted urgently to intervene. And UK officials who were shocked by the scandal have confirmed that they are quickly moving to protect people in the UK from being targeted by Grok’s worst outputs.

While Ofcom does not directly refer to Musk’s comments on censorship, the regulator takes a defensive stance in its announcement—likely preparing to fight X’s argument by pointing out that X would be the one in charge of deciding what’s illegal content and what should be removed.

“The legal responsibility is on platforms to decide whether content breaks UK laws, and they can use our Illegal Content Judgements Guidance when making these decisions,” Ofcom noted. “Ofcom is not a censor—we do not tell platforms which specific posts or accounts to take down.”