Man arrested for creating and circulating AI-generated obscene images of college acquaintance
A 22-year-old man in Delhi was arrested for using AI tools to generate obscene images of a college acquaintance and circulating them through fake social media accounts. He obtained her photographs from her private Instagram account and used AI image-generation technology to create morphed content, which he distributed on Discord and other platforms to harass her.
What happened
A 22-year-old man, Keshav Bansal, accessed photographs from a college acquaintance's private Instagram account and used AI-based image-generation tools to create obscene images, which he uploaded on anonymous Discord servers.
Bansal operated multiple fake Instagram, Discord and Facebook accounts and used several Gmail IDs to conceal his identity and circulate the content. He later reposted more explicit AI-generated images and videos created by other users.
Reported impact
The 22-year-old woman received messages from anonymous Instagram accounts informing her that morphed photographs and videos of her were being circulated through Discord servers. She received threatening messages intended to humiliate and harass her.
Index analysis
A police investigation analysed digital footprints, social media accounts, email IDs and other technical evidence linked to the fake profiles. The technical probe revealed linkages among multiple Instagram, Discord and Gmail accounts allegedly used in creating, uploading and circulating the objectionable material.
Classification
Sources and evidence
This record was researched and written by the Index, based on the following original reporting.