The Internet Watch Foundation published its 2025 annual report on 6 August 2026, documenting a 68 percent year-on-year increase in reports of AI-generated child sexual abuse material, with analysts confirming 30,000 unique AI-generated images and videos assessed as criminal under UK law, many depicting photorealistic abuse of children who do not exist alongside manipulated images of real children. The report warns that generative AI tools are lowering the barrier to entry for offenders and complicating detection, as synthetic material is often shared in private messaging channels rather than on indexed websites, and urges platforms and governments to prioritise proactive monitoring technologies.
The shift from indexed websites to private messaging means that detection must operate where the harm is actually circulating. Guardii's anti-CSAM module, which recognises both photographic and AI-generated child sexual abuse material including deepfakes, monitors direct messages in real time across Instagram, Snapchat, Discord, Roblox and other platforms, blocking or flagging material before it reaches the intended recipient and enabling immediate escalation to law enforcement, addressing the operational gap the Internet Watch Foundation has identified without waiting for public reporting or retrospective takedown.
