With summer break about to start and children spending more time online, ALERT’s Internet Child Exploitation (ICE) unit is warning parents of the emerging online trend of deepfakes involving artificial intelligence (AI).
The Canadian Centre for Child Protection defines a deepfake as “video, images or audio recordings that look or sound completely realistic but have been altered using AI. Faces can be super-imposed, expressions can be manipulated, and separate elements can be combined to produce something entirely new … commonly used to show someone doing or saying something that didn’t do or say.”
According to Cybertip.ca, roughly 4,000 sexually explicit deepfake images and videos of children and youth were processed in 2024.
Thorn, a nonprofit that builds technology to defend children from sexual abuse, shares the data which shows one in 10 youth say they know of cases where their friends and classmates have created “deepfake nudes” of other kids using generative AI tools.
“AI and deepfakes are a new trend we’re starting to see online and enter into some of our investigations. It’s an area that continues to grow and evolve rapidly. It’s important for us to be responsive in not only sharing our concerns, but also educating parents,” said Cst. Stephanie Bosh, ALERT ICE, in a press release.
“Our team is hearing more stories about the negative effects of AI, especially when it’s used by someone with ill intent, each time we’re out in the community. It is imperative that parents are aware that this technology exists, especially with kids home this summer,” said Cpl. Heather Bangle, ALERT ICE.
Cpl. Bangle and Cst. Bosch are members of the ICE unit’s community engagement team, which has provided 64 online safety presentations this year to parents and caregivers across the province. This team was established in 2024 in an effort to educate and prevent future cases of online exploitation.
The community engagement team encourages parents and caregivers to:
- talk to children about their online activities;
- build trust so they feel safe about coming to you if something happens online;
- take an interest and learn about their interactions on the platforms they use;
- show vulnerability to help create a safe space; and
- ask questions about their online apps, games and friends.
Anyone with information on any child exploitation situation is asked to contact their local police, or to report their concern anonymously to Crime Stoppers (1-800-222-TIPS).
