The number of children in the United Kingdom reporting explicit deepfake images of themselves has sharply increased, according to figures from the Report Remove service. This anonymous flagging service, which helps block intimate images from appearing online, recorded 420 reports from children in the first six months of 2026. This figure already surpasses the total of 397 reports received throughout the entirety of 2025.
Dan Sexton, chief technology officer at the Internet Watch Foundation (IWF), which operates Report Remove in partnership with the NSPCC, stated that these statistics highlight the growing difficulty in preventing the manipulation of online photographs. He noted that even benign images taken from public social media accounts can be altered into abusive material. The IWF has added a specific option for children to flag AI-generated material due to the volume of such reports.
The majority of manipulated image reports received by Report Remove in 2025 and 2026 have been severe enough to meet the threshold for child sexual abuse material (CSAM). AI-generated CSAM is illegal in the UK. The problem extends beyond embarrassment, as some victims have been targeted for sextortion, facing demands for money or threats of wider distribution of manipulated images. There have also been instances where schools have been targeted by individuals collecting pupil photographs and using AI to create exploitative content.
The ease with which AI can generate convincing fake images has become a significant concern. Creating such imagery now requires minimal technical skill, while removing it from the internet is a more complex and time-consuming process. The UK government has introduced legislation to tackle AI child abuse images at their source, making it illegal to adapt, possess, supply, or offer to supply an AI model optimised to create CSAM. This new legislation aims to prevent AI models from being misused to generate synthetic child sexual abuse images.
Rani Govender, an online safety expert at the NSPCC, has called for tech companies to implement stronger safety protections within their AI products to prevent the creation of explicit material. The IWF and the National Crime Agency (NCA) have also issued guidance for parents and carers, advising on safe image sharing practices and how to discuss AI and image consent with children. This guidance comes amid growing concerns about criminals exploiting openly available children's images to create realistic sexualised content.
The trend of AI being used to create CSAM has been escalating. In 2025, the IWF identified 3,443 AI-generated child sexual abuse videos, a significant increase from previous years. Furthermore, the severity of AI-generated CSAM has intensified, with Category A content (depicting penetrative sexual activity, bestiality, or sadistic sexual activity) accounting for a larger percentage of illegal material. Girls remain overwhelmingly targeted, comprising 94% of illegal AI images in 2025.
The UK government has been working to update laws to keep pace with technological advancements in this area. The Crime and Policing Bill includes measures to criminalise AI models optimised for CSAM, as well as those who maintain or moderate websites used for sharing such imagery. Additionally, existing laws criminalising 'paedophile manuals' have been updated to cover artificially generated CSAM.