Coimisiún na Meán must action against Grok AI abuses, says Gibney

Coimisiún na Meán must urge the European Commission to be more proactive in taking action against Twitter, according to Social Democrats TD Sineád Gibney.

In the last week, AI-generated photos of minors  in sexual contexts have become prominent on Twitter, calling into question the further usage of the social media platform by government parties and government agencies.

The Dublin Rathdown TD, who sits on the Oireachtas AI Committee, said that Grok AI has become a tool to create sexual abuse imagery since the introduction of a feature which digitally undresses images of real people.

Yet Elon Musk’s platform, Twitter, remains unsanctioned, she noted.

“Coimisiún na Meán was created to protect our citizens, particularly those under the age of 18, from such abuses. The agency must fulfil its duties by making a case to the European Commission to protect our fundamental rights in light of these developments.”

“At home, Coimisiún na Meán is responsible for ensuring social media platforms comply with its Online Safety Framework, which deems the sharing of non-consensual intimate images and the generation of child sexual abuse material illegal.

Gibney said that the agency cannot be “fobbed off” by European powers, saying “it must take action domestically when our laws are violated.”

“Coimisiún na Meán’s Online Safety Code requires video-sharing platforms headquartered in Ireland to ban the uploading and sharing of harmful content, including child sex abuse material. This code will be nothing but a paper tiger if action is not taken against companies which violate it, as Twitter is doing now.”

The Social Democrats TD said “while the Comisiún must make the strongest possible case to the European Commission to take action, this must not allow us to become complacent at home. Part V of Ireland’s Electoral Reform Act, passed in 2022, has been put on ice due to complaints from Brussels and a coalition of social media companies that the law went further than EU standards.”

“This Act would establish safeguards against the likes of disinformation, yet the European Commission reserved the right to initiate pre-litigation proceedings against Ireland if Part V was commenced. This shows that Europe can be out-of-step with what’s required to protect our citizens from online harm.

“Comisiún na Meán must now fulfil its mandate by taking domestic action against Twitter,” she said.