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Tech firms and child safety agencies will be granted permission to assess whether AI systems can produce child abuse images under recently introduced British laws.

Substantial Increase in AI-Generated Harmful Content

The announcement came as revelations from a protection watchdog showing that reports of AI-generated CSAM have more than doubled in the past year, growing from 199 in 2024 to 426 in 2025.

Updated Regulatory Framework

Under the changes, the authorities will permit approved AI developers and child protection groups to examine AI models – the underlying technology for conversational AI and image generators – and ensure they have sufficient protective measures to prevent them from creating depictions of child exploitation.

"Ultimately about stopping abuse before it happens," declared the minister for AI and online safety, adding: "Experts, under strict conditions, can now identify the danger in AI systems early."

Tackling Regulatory Obstacles

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

This law is aimed at averting that problem by enabling to halt the creation of those materials at their origin.

Legislative Structure

The amendments are being added by the government as revisions to the criminal justice legislation, which is also establishing a prohibition on owning, creating or distributing AI systems designed to create child sexual abuse material.

Real-World Impact

This week, the minister toured the London headquarters of Childline and heard a mock-up call to advisors featuring a report of AI-based exploitation. The call portrayed a adolescent seeking help after facing extortion using a sexualised deepfake of himself, created using AI.

"When I learn about children experiencing extortion online, it is a source of intense frustration in me and justified concern amongst families," he stated.

Alarming Data

A leading internet monitoring organization reported that cases of AI-generated abuse content – such as webpages that may include multiple images – had significantly increased so far this year.

Instances of category A material – the most serious form of exploitation – rose from 2,621 images or videos to 3,086.

• Female children were overwhelmingly targeted, accounting for 94% of illegal AI images in 2025
• Depictions of infants to two-year-olds rose from five in 2024 to 92 in 2025

Industry Reaction

The law change could "constitute a crucial step to ensure AI tools are safe before they are released," stated the chief executive of the internet monitoring organization.

"Artificial intelligence systems have made it so survivors can be targeted all over again with just a simple actions, providing criminals the capability to create potentially endless quantities of advanced, photorealistic exploitative content," she continued. "Content which further commodifies victims' suffering, and makes young people, especially female children, more vulnerable both online and offline."

Counseling Interaction Data

Childline also published information of counselling sessions where AI has been mentioned. AI-related risks mentioned in the conversations include:

• Using AI to evaluate body size, physique and appearance
• Chatbots dissuading young people from talking to trusted adults about abuse
• Facing harassment online with AI-generated material
• Digital extortion using AI-faked images

Between April and September this year, Childline conducted 367 counselling sessions where AI, conversational AI and associated terms were mentioned, four times as many as in the equivalent timeframe last year.

Fifty percent of the references of AI in the 2025 interactions were related to mental health and wellness, encompassing using AI assistants for assistance and AI therapeutic applications.