A photograph shared on various social media outlets presents Jeffrey Epstein, the late financier, and convicted sex offender, on a beach with four boys. His arm is seen around one of them. But it appears that this image originated on an Instagram account that posts pictures generated by artificial intelligence.
On March 28, the Twitter account @aiartistking posted a humorous meme about Midjourney AI. This image generator recently generated fake depictions of President Donald Trump being arrested and Pope Francis wearing a puffy white coat. The post was accompanied by hashtags such as #funny #meme and #midjourneyai.
@HoaxEye, a Twitter account specializing in debunking various images going viral on the internet and was responsible for uncovering the Epstein photo, revealed on March 8 that Hive Moderation’s AI detection program had determined a 99.9% possibility of the picture having been generated with artificial intelligence.
We looked for the image in other places on the internet. Still, we could not find any reliable proof that it is genuine, such as it being distributed by news outlets like they have done with other Epstein images or included in a database of his photos, for example, the Getty Images archive, which has over 700 pictures of him.
In 2019, Epstein was discovered dead in a jail cell in New York City while detained for federal sex-trafficking accusations. The medical examiner’s office of New York City declared that the cause of death was suicide by hanging. Our assessment of the claim that this is an original photo is False.
The incident involving the AI art account and the image of Jeffrey Epstein and the boys serves as a reminder of the ethical considerations and responsibilities associated with using AI in content generation. It highlights the need for responsible and ethical use of AI, particularly in sensitive and controversial topics. By prioritizing ethical considerations, ensuring accountability and transparency, and adhering to legal and societal standards, we can harness the potential of AI for positive impact while minimizing risks and challenges.
Source: @politifact
