Beverly Vista Middle School in Beverly Hills is investigating some students who the school say created nude images of classmates using artificial intelligence and later passed around among students.
School officials said school administrators were alerted about the nude photos last week. The images included the faces of some students and were superimposed onto AI-generated nude bodies, according to the Beverly Hills Unified School District.
“It is very scary people can’t feel safe to come to school,” one student who did not want to be identified said. “They are scared people will show off explicit photos of them.”
Officials with the Beverly Hills Unified School District said they were “appalled” by the misuse of AI in a statement.
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“We will be looking at the appropriate discipline so that students understand there are consequences and accountability for their actions,” said Dr. Michael Bregy, Superintendent of the Beverly Hills Unified School District.
While lawmakers at the state and federal levels were said to be seeking ways to determine how to address cases involving artificial intelligence, Bregy said school districts need more support from legislators.
“School Districts aren’t known for having to advocate with congressman to get the laws to change,” said Bregy. “The safety of laws is clearly being outpaced by the technology we have.”
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Some parents also said they hope Beverly Vista Middle School will take swift action.
“It needs to be some kind of huge consequence for that,” said one parent.
Those students who were targeted by the fake AI images were being provided with counseling, according to the Beverly Hills Unified School District.
It's not the first time school communities had have had deal with these issues. Last year, school officials in New Jersey investigated fake nude photos of minors at a New Jersey high school.
