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Tech firms and child safety agencies will receive authority to assess whether artificial intelligence systems can generate child exploitation images under new UK legislation.

Significant Increase in AI-Generated Harmful Content

The declaration came as revelations from a safety watchdog showing that cases of AI-generated child sexual abuse material have more than doubled in the last twelve months, rising from 199 in 2024 to 426 in 2025.

New Legal Framework

Under the amendments, the authorities will allow approved AI companies and child safety groups to inspect AI systems – the underlying technology for chatbots and visual AI tools – and ensure they have adequate protective measures to prevent them from creating images of child exploitation.

"Fundamentally about stopping abuse before it happens," declared Kanishka Narayan, adding: "Experts, under rigorous conditions, can now detect the danger in AI models promptly."

Addressing Legal Challenges

The amendments have been introduced because it is against the law to create and own CSAM, meaning that AI creators and other parties cannot generate such images as part of a evaluation regime. Until now, authorities had to wait until AI-generated CSAM was uploaded online before addressing it.

This legislation is aimed at preventing that issue by enabling to stop the creation of those images at their origin.

Legislative Structure

The amendments are being added by the authorities as revisions to the criminal justice legislation, which is also implementing a prohibition on possessing, creating or sharing AI models designed to create exploitative content.

Practical Consequences

This week, the official visited the London headquarters of Childline and listened to a mock-up call to counsellors involving a report of AI-based exploitation. The call depicted a adolescent seeking help after facing extortion using a sexualised deepfake of themselves, created using AI.

"When I learn about young people facing extortion online, it is a cause of extreme frustration in me and rightful anger amongst families," he said.

Concerning Statistics

A leading online safety foundation stated that cases of AI-generated abuse material – such as webpages that may contain numerous files – had more than doubled so far this year.

Cases of the most severe content – the gravest form of exploitation – increased from 2,621 images or videos to 3,086.

• Girls were predominantly victimized, making up 94% of prohibited AI images in 2025
• Depictions of newborns to two-year-olds rose from five in 2024 to 92 in 2025

Industry Response

The law change could "represent a vital step to guarantee AI products are secure before they are launched," stated the chief executive of the internet monitoring foundation.

"Artificial intelligence systems have enabled so survivors can be victimised repeatedly with just a simple actions, providing offenders the capability to create possibly limitless quantities of advanced, photorealistic child sexual abuse material," she continued. "Content which further exploits victims' suffering, and renders children, especially girls, more vulnerable both online and offline."

Support Interaction Information

The children's helpline also published details of counselling interactions where AI has been referenced. AI-related harms discussed in the sessions include:

• Employing AI to evaluate body size, physique and appearance
• Chatbots discouraging children from talking to trusted guardians about abuse
• Facing harassment online with AI-generated material
• Online blackmail using AI-manipulated images

During April and September this year, Childline conducted 367 support interactions where AI, chatbots and associated topics were mentioned, significantly more as many as in the equivalent timeframe last year.

Fifty percent of the mentions of AI in the 2025 sessions were related to mental health and wellbeing, including utilizing chatbots for support and AI therapy apps.