We're Completely Unprepared for the Deepfake Porn Boom

Last week, A.I.–generated nude images of pop superstar Taylor Swift were produced and distributed without her consent. They circulated throughout the internet, with one single post on X (née Twitter) garnering 45 million views before the site took it down. Deepfakes, as they've come to be called in recent years, often target female celebrities, but with the rise of A.I., it's easier than ever for everyday people (almost always women) to be targeted. Last year, more than 143,000 deepfake porn videos were created, according to one estimate from the independent researcher Genevieve Oh, more than every other previous year combined. That number will, in all likelihood, only continue to rise.