Schoolyard bullies grow into workplace bullies. A recent bullying incident in Louisiana, where teen boys created AI deepfake nudes of several girls at school, is actually an important case for businesses to draw crucial lessons.
When the boys started disseminating deepfake nudes, the girls, and one in particular, complained and asked for help from the school.
The school, according to an Associated Press story, didn’t take the situation seriously. Because they were being shared on Snapchat, where messages disappear after a certain time, administrators went so far as to doubt the existence of the deepfake images.
“Kids lie a lot,” the principal said. “They lie about all kinds of things. They blow lots of things out of proportion on a daily basis. In 17 years, they do it all the time. So to my knowledge, at 2 o’clock when I checked again, there were no pictures.”
But what isn’t in dispute is that the female victim was distraught and the school didn’t protect her, didn’t change her bus route, and suspended her after she slapped one of the boys she believed was creating and sharing the images. Then the school expelled her and sent her to an alternative school. She got depressed, stopped doing her work, and needed treatment. Ultimately, the school board had a change of heart and allowed her to return on probation.
To keep reading, click here: Deepfake Porn Is the Next Workplace Harassment Crisis
