Peek-a-boo, Big Tech sees you: Expert warns just 20 cloud images can make an AI deepfake video of your child

Parents emotion capturing their kids’ large moments, from archetypal steps to day candles. 

But a caller survey retired of the U.K. shows galore of those treasured images whitethorn beryllium scanned, analyzed and turned into information by unreality retention services, and astir fractional of parents don’t adjacent recognize it.

A survey of 2,019 U.K. parents, conducted by Perspectus Global and commissioned by Swiss privateness tech institution Proton, recovered that 48% of parents were unaware providers similar Google Photos, Apple iCloud, Amazon Photos and Dropbox tin entree and analyse the photos they upload.

TEENS ARE NOW USING AI CHATBOTS TO CREATE AND SPREAD NUDE IMAGES OF CLASSMATES, ALARMING EDUCATION EXPERTS

First woman Melania Trump, joined by President Donald Trump, delivers remarks earlier President Trump signed the Take it Down Act into instrumentality successful the Rose Garden of the White House May 19, 2025, successful Washington, D.C. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

These companies use artificial intelligence to benignant images into albums, admit faces and locations and suggest memories. While convenient, the aforesaid exertion tin besides person much unsafe uses, similar deepfake videos.

Professor Carsten Maple, a cybersecurity adept astatine the University of Warwick, warns that, with arsenic fewer arsenic 20 photos, AI tools tin make a convincing integer clone of a person, including deepfake videos. These tools don’t request a high-resolution scan oregon video footage, conscionable a fistful of everyday pictures successful the cloud.

"Parents are unwittingly opening their children up to imaginable exploitation by criminals who privation to usage their information for their ain purposes," Maple told the Edinburgh Evening News. 

He added that adjacent mundane photos, similar a kid astatine schoolhouse oregon successful the backyard, tin uncover names and locations. Fifty-three percent of parents surveyed had nary thought this was possible.

PROTECTING YOUR DAUGHTER FROM DEEPFAKES AND ONLINE ABUSE

President Donald Trump invited archetypal woman Melania Trump to motion the caller anti-revenge porn enactment she helped usher done to the decorativeness enactment during a signing ceremonial astatine the White House's Rose Garden Monday afternoon. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

Over fractional of parents, 56%, person automatic photograph uploads enabled, meaning their phones perpetually nonstop caller images to the unreality without ever having to pat "upload."

WHAT IS ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE (AI)?

Even without deepfakes, information postulation is extensive. Only 43% of parents knew unreality services cod metadata similar time, day and location, and conscionable 36% surveyed were alert that these companies analyse the contents of photos too.

Concern is catching up to convenience. Nearly 3 successful 4 parents (72%) surveyed said photograph privateness is important, and 69% acknowledged the risks of integer footprints near by storing household photos online. 

First woman Melania Trump walks to a gathering to impulse transition of the Take It Down Act by the U.S. Senate astatine the U.S. Capitol successful Washington, DC, March 3, 2025.  (Saul Loeb/AFP via Getty Images)

Though the survey was conducted successful the U.K., its findings use globally. American families usage the aforesaid technology platforms and look the aforesaid questions: Where are kids’ photos going? Who is looking astatine them? And what could they beryllium turned into?