WHITEWATER — A new investigation into the origins of explicit AI images of Jefferson High School students has reopened old wounds in nearby Whitewater.
Several parents told TMJ4 two eighth-graders at Whitewater Middle School created obscene pictures of about 20 girls in their class during the 2023-2024 school year.
Watch here: Why an investigation into the origin of sexually explicit AI images of Jefferson High School students is reopening old wounds for some families in nearby Whitewater.
"She kept hearing from students that yeah, we saw the pictures, she's definitely one of them," one parent who did not want to be identified in order to protect her daughter's privacy said. "They took her head from pictures and put it on naked bodies."
The Whitewater Police Department confirmed the incident and investigation with TMJ4. The students suspected of creating the explicit AI images went through the Walworth County Court system, but did not face any major punishment from the incident.
The parent who spoke on the record with TMJ4 but did not want to share her name hopes laws catch up to AI and encourages other parents to watch their childrens' devices closely.
"It is absolutely a real danger, it can happen to anyone," the concerned parent said. "AI has advanced leaps and bounds in the past two years. Just think of how good of pictures they can make. Once that picture is made, it is on the Internet and it's there forever."
The parents tell TMJ4 the two students suspected of making the explicit AI images are no longer in the Whitewater Unified School District.
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