In recent years, law enforcement agencies in Canada and throughout the world have begun to see a significant increase in the number of child pornography cases involving AI created child sexual abuse material. With AI technology exploding in popularity, a darker trend has emerged leading to an influx of new child sexual abuse material on the dark web.
The Criminal Code defines child pornography as any written material, audio recording, photo, film, video, or other visual representation that depicts children engaged in sexual activity or whose dominant characteristic is the genitals of an individual under the age of 18, whether or not it is created by electronic or mechanical means.
This very broad definition includes material created using artificial intelligence. While many internet users believe that AI created child sexual abuse material is less serious because it does not involve the abuse of real children, this is not the case. The Criminal Code does not distinguish between “real” child pornography material and AI created material.
In the last decade, Canadian courts have begun to have a better understanding of the impact of child sexual abuse offences on the victims of abuse as well as on society as a whole. Courts have reasoned that though AI created child pornography material does not involve the abuse of real individuals, it does create a marketplace for that type of material which further exploits children. It has also been established that those who consume child pornography are more likely to commit sexual assault or child luring.
As a result, those convicted of possessing AI created child pornography will be prosecuted and sentenced in the same manner as an offender who possessed “real” child pornography. Changes to the Criminal Code and recent decisions from the Supreme Court of Canada have made it clear that those convicted of offences involving the sexual abuse of children should face significant penitentiary sentences. This also applies to individuals convicted of child pornography offences involving AI created material.
Individuals charged with accessing or possessing child pornography are routinely sentenced to the penitentiary. These sentences typically range from two years to mid-single digit sentences. The length of the sentence will depend on many factors including the nature of the child pornography material, the amount of material the offender possessed, and the offender’s level of engagement with the material.
Individuals convicted of creating child pornography material using AI technology, or making such material available to others, will face increased penalties. AI technology provides internet users with the unique ability to create large amounts of material quickly with very little effort. This has led to an influx of AI created child sexual abuse material on the dark web, leading to further exploitation of children. As a result, courts offer little sentencing mitigation to offenders convicted of creating child sexual abuse material using AI.
Offenders convicted of creating child pornography using AI face penitentiary sentences generally ranging from two years to upper single digit sentences. Sentencing for creating or making available child pornography are on average longer than sentences for possessing or accessing child pornography. The court will consider, among other things, the nature of the material created as well as the amount of material created when sentencing the offender.
The number of offenders charged with AI related child pornography offences is expected to continue to rise across Canada. Major law enforcement agencies across the world continue to crack down child sexual exploitation material with the number of arrests increasing each year.
Jordan Donich is a child pornography lawyer at Donich Law.
This article was provided by Donich Law