Washington, D.C. – Today, the National Association of Attorneys General (NAAG) issued a letter on behalf of a bipartisan coalition of 54 state and territory attorneys general that urges Congress to study how artificial intelligence (AI) can and is being used to exploit children through child sexual abuse material (CSAM). The attorneys general also asked Congress to propose legislation that would protect children from those abuses.

In the letter, the attorneys general commend Congress for its efforts to study AI and begin the process of developing a regulatory framework to address some of the potential harms. However, the attorneys general remain concerned with the fact that the exploitation of children through AI technology has been underreported and understudied.

“While internet crimes against children are already being actively prosecuted, we are concerned that AI is creating a new frontier for abuse that makes prosecution more difficult,” the attorneys general wrote in the letter. “We are engaged in a race against time to protect the children of our country from the dangers of AI. Indeed, the proverbial walls of the city have already been breached. Now is the time to act.”

It is becoming increasingly apparent that AI can be used to exploit children in innumerable ways and the technology has the potential to be used to identify someone’s location, mimic their voice, and generate deepfakes. Most disturbingly, AI is also being used to generate CSAM.

The attorneys general ask Congress to take action in their letter, starting by establishing an expert commission to study the means and methods of AI that can be used to exploit children specifically and to propose solutions to deter and address such exploitation. After reviewing that commission’s recommendations, Congress should act to deter and address child exploitation, such as by expanding existing restrictions on CSAM to explicitly cover AI-generated CSAM. This will ensure prosecutors have the tools they need to protect our children.

Attorneys general from the following states and territories signed the letter:

Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Northern Mariana Islands, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Puerto Rico, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virgin Islands, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin, and Wyoming.

54 Attorneys General Urge Study of AI and its Harmful Impact on Children letter.

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The National Association of Attorneys General (NAAG) is the nonpartisan national forum for America’s state and territory attorneys general and their staff. NAAG provides a community for members to collaboratively address issues important to their work and resources to support attorneys general in protecting the rule of law and the United States Constitution.