A soldier from the U.S. Army stationed in Alaska utilized artificial intelligence to produce child sexual abuse materials, as revealed by federal prosecutors this week. This case highlights the extreme measures that online predators will resort to in order to exploit children.

According to the Justice Department, 34-year-old Seth Herrera used AI chatbots to fabricate pornographic images of minors he was familiar with. Records indicate that he also viewed a vast number of images depicting severe sexual abuse of children, including infants.

“Individuals thinking about using AI to commit crimes should reconsider — the Department of Justice is fully committed to prosecuting AI-related criminal activities and will pursue harsher sentences whenever appropriate,” stated Deputy U.S. Attorney General Lisa Monaco.

The FBI had previously issued a public service announcement warning that all forms of child sexual abuse material, including AI-generated content, are illegal.

This arrest coincides with growing federal concerns over the rise of sexual abuse content being generated through AI, which allows offenders to produce images and videos on a much larger scale according to the Department of Homeland Security. While this technology presents new challenges for law enforcement, it may also help in rapidly identifying offenders and victims.

Court papers detail child pornography chat groups

As detailed in a pre-trial detention memo filed in U.S. District Court for Alaska, Herrera was involved in online messaging groups dedicated to sharing and trading abusive material. Stationed at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Anchorage, he reportedly saved hidden recordings of minors changing clothes in his home and then employed AI chatbots to generate abusive content of them.

He allegedly used images and videos of children from social media to create sexually explicit content, according to the memo.

Agents from Homeland Security Investigations executed a search warrant at Herrera’s residence, where he lives with his wife and daughter. They discovered three Samsung Galaxy phones loaded with tens of thousands of videos and images depicting the rape and other forms of sexual abuse against children as young as infants, some of which dated back to March 2021. The materials were stored in a password-protected application disguised as a calculator, according to prosecutors.

Furthermore, he sought out abusive material involving children who were approximately the same age as his daughter, and it was noted that six children resided in proximity at the military base.

Court records indicate that he confessed during an interview to having viewed child sexual abuse content online for the past year and a half.

“No child should ever have to endure such horrors, and no one should feel untouchable from the law when it comes to these offenses,” remarked Katrina W. Berger, executive associate director of Homeland Security Investigations.

Herrera was arrested on Friday and faces charges including transportation, receipt, and possession of child pornography, carrying a potential maximum penalty of 20 years in prison. His first court appearance is slated for Tuesday.

A public defender listed for Herrera did not respond to requests for comments from YSL News on Monday.

Combatting sexual predators in the age of AI

The recent arrest marks a significant development as federal law enforcement confronts the growing issue of sexual predators using advanced technology.

“Federal law strictly prohibits the creation, advertisement, distribution, transportation, receipt, sale, or possession of any Child Sexual Abuse Material (CSAM), including realistic computer-generated images,” emphasized the FBI in a public service announcement.

Authorities indicate they have successfully utilized emerging technologies to apprehend offenders. In 2023, Homeland Security Investigations applied machine learning to identify 311 cases of online sexual exploitation. This operation, named Operation Renewed Hope, successfully identified or rescued over 100 victims and led to several arrests.

Reports concerning suspected production of child sexual abuse content, especially AI-generated materials, can be made to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children at 800-THE LOST or through their website at www.cybertipline.org. It can also be reported to the FBI Internet Crime Complaint Center at www.ic3.gov.