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Tech firms and child protection organizations will be granted authority to assess whether AI systems can produce child abuse images under new UK laws.

Substantial Increase in AI-Generated Illegal Content

The announcement coincided with findings from a safety monitoring body showing that cases of AI-generated CSAM have more than doubled in the past year, rising from 199 in 2024 to 426 in 2025.

Updated Regulatory Framework

Under the amendments, the authorities will allow designated AI companies and child safety organizations to inspect AI models – the underlying technology for chatbots and visual AI tools – and verify they have sufficient safeguards to stop them from creating images of child sexual abuse.

"Fundamentally about stopping abuse before it occurs," declared Kanishka Narayan, adding: "Specialists, under strict conditions, can now identify the danger in AI systems early."

Tackling Legal Obstacles

The changes have been introduced because it is illegal to produce and own CSAM, meaning that AI creators and other parties cannot generate such images as part of a testing process. Until now, authorities had to wait until AI-generated CSAM was published online before dealing with it.

This legislation is aimed at preventing that issue by helping to halt the production of those materials at source.

Legislative Framework

The amendments are being introduced by the government as modifications to the criminal justice legislation, which is also establishing a prohibition on possessing, producing or sharing AI systems designed to generate child sexual abuse material.

Practical Impact

This recently, the minister toured the London base of a children's helpline and heard a simulated conversation to counsellors featuring a report of AI-based exploitation. The call portrayed a teenager seeking help after being blackmailed using a explicit AI-generated image of themselves, constructed using AI.

"When I learn about children experiencing extortion online, it is a source of extreme anger in me and justified concern amongst parents," he said.

Alarming Statistics

A prominent internet monitoring foundation stated that instances of AI-generated abuse content – such as online pages that may include numerous images – had more than doubled so far this year.

Cases of the most severe content – the gravest form of abuse – rose from 2,621 visual files to 3,086.

• Female children were overwhelmingly targeted, making up 94% of prohibited AI images in 2025
• Portrayals of infants to toddlers rose from five in 2024 to 92 in 2025

Industry Reaction

The law change could "represent a vital step to ensure AI tools are safe before they are released," stated the chief executive of the online safety organization.

"Artificial intelligence systems have made it so survivors can be victimised all over again with just a few clicks, providing offenders the capability to make potentially limitless amounts of advanced, lifelike exploitative content," she continued. "Content which additionally exploits victims' suffering, and makes children, particularly female children, less safe on and off line."

Support Interaction Information

The children's helpline also published information of support interactions where AI has been referenced. AI-related harms mentioned in the conversations comprise:

• Employing AI to rate body size, body and looks
• Chatbots dissuading children from consulting trusted guardians about harm
• Facing harassment online with AI-generated content
• Online blackmail using AI-faked pictures

Between April and September this year, Childline delivered 367 counselling interactions where AI, chatbots and associated terms were discussed, four times as many as in the same period last year.

Half of the references of AI in the 2025 sessions were connected with psychological wellbeing and wellbeing, encompassing using AI assistants for assistance and AI therapy applications.