AI-generated copies of Holocaust survivor's memoir sold with antisemitic pseudonyms
AI tools were used to rewrite a Holocaust survivor's published memoir and sell manipulated versions on Amazon and Goodreads under altered titles and antisemitic pseudonyms for profit. Co-author Kate Thompson reported the incident and pressured the platforms to remove the fraudulent copies.
What happened
The Kindle version of Renee Salt's 2025 memoir 'A Mother's Promise: My true story of surviving Auschwitz and the horrors of the Holocaust', co-authored with journalist Kate Thompson, was taken and rewritten using AI before being sold on Amazon and Goodreads under altered titles.
At least two manipulated versions were created and uploaded to the platforms, including 'Renee Salt memoir: A Mother's Promise: A Holocaust survivor's story of love, loss and unbreakable hope' and 'From Darkness To Light: The Remarkable Journey of Holocaust Survivor Renee Salt', priced at £8.99.
Reported impact
The fraudsters used pseudonyms that Thompson described as antisemitic, including the name 'Jude' (German for 'Jew') and 'Penny Pincher', profiting from the memoir of a 95-year-old Holocaust survivor who escaped Auschwitz and Bergen-Belsen concentration camp.
Index analysis
The AI text generation was used to manipulate the original work just enough to avoid copyright claims while preserving the core content of Salt's personal account of surviving the Holocaust and losing her parents and relatives in the camps.
Governance controls
Following pressure from Thompson, the AI-generated memoirs were removed from Amazon and Goodreads. Amazon stated it invests 'significant time and resources to ensure our guidelines are followed' and removes books that do not adhere to them.
Classification
Sources and evidence
Sources not yet published
This record was researched and written by the Index from original reporting. Its sources are still being verified by an editor, and they are listed here once that check is complete. Until then the record carries no reviewer.