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Technology companies and child safety organizations will be granted permission to evaluate whether AI tools can generate child abuse images under new UK laws.

Substantial Rise in AI-Generated Illegal Content

The announcement coincided with revelations from a safety watchdog showing that cases of AI-generated CSAM have more than doubled in the last twelve months, rising from 199 in 2024 to 426 in 2025.

Updated Legal Structure

Under the changes, the government will permit approved AI companies and child protection organizations to inspect AI models – the underlying technology for conversational AI and visual AI tools – and verify they have adequate protective measures to stop them from creating images of child sexual abuse.

"Fundamentally about preventing abuse before it occurs," declared Kanishka Narayan, noting: "Specialists, under strict conditions, can now identify the risk in AI models promptly."

Addressing Regulatory Obstacles

The changes have been introduced because it is against the law to produce and own CSAM, meaning that AI developers and other parties cannot create such content as part of a testing process. Previously, authorities had to wait until AI-generated CSAM was published online before addressing it.

This law is designed to preventing that issue by helping to stop the creation of those images at their origin.

Legislative Framework

The changes are being added by the authorities as revisions to the criminal justice legislation, which is also implementing a prohibition on possessing, producing or distributing AI models designed to generate exploitative content.

Real-World Impact

This week, the minister visited the London headquarters of Childline and listened to a simulated conversation to advisors featuring a account of AI-based exploitation. The interaction depicted a teenager requesting help after being blackmailed using a explicit deepfake of himself, constructed using AI.

"When I learn about young people experiencing blackmail online, it is a cause of extreme anger in me and rightful concern amongst parents," he said.

Concerning Statistics

A leading internet monitoring foundation reported that cases of AI-generated exploitation material – such as webpages that may contain numerous files – had more than doubled so far this year.

Cases of the most severe material – the most serious form of abuse – rose from 2,621 images or videos to 3,086.

• Girls were predominantly victimized, accounting for 94% of prohibited AI depictions in 2025
• Depictions of infants to two-year-olds rose from five in 2024 to 92 in 2025

Industry Response

The law change could "represent a vital step to ensure AI products are secure before they are launched," commented the head of the internet monitoring organization.

"AI tools have enabled so victims can be targeted repeatedly with just a simple actions, providing criminals the ability to make possibly limitless amounts of sophisticated, photorealistic exploitative content," she added. "Material which additionally exploits survivors' suffering, and makes young people, particularly girls, less safe on and off line."

Counseling Interaction Information

The children's helpline also published information of counselling interactions where AI has been referenced. AI-related risks mentioned in the conversations include:

• Employing AI to rate weight, body and looks
• AI assistants discouraging young people from consulting safe adults about abuse
• Facing harassment online with AI-generated content
• Digital blackmail using AI-manipulated pictures

During April and September this year, the helpline delivered 367 support sessions where AI, chatbots and associated terms were mentioned, significantly more as many as in the same period last year.

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