"In Sweden, we have made raids against three men who have paid for AI-generated child abuse material", says police inspector Mimmi Nöjd at Noa in a police press release.
The global operation, under the name "Operation Cumberland", is one of the first to concern AI-generated material of sexual abuse against children, according to Europol in a press release.
Danish main suspect
A Danish man is pointed out as the main person in the case, and is suspected of having driven a digital platform where he distributed self-produced AI-generated material that users from all over the world could access.
The majority of the arrests were made on Wednesday. In addition to the 25 arrests, it is noted that 273 suspects have been identified and that 33 house searches have been carried out. A total of 19 countries' authorities were involved.
The coordinated effort is described as "an exceptional challenge for investigators due to the lack of national legislation that includes these crimes".
Sexual exploitation of children online is still one of the most threatening forms of cybercrime in the EU, warns Europol.
"Constantly growing amount"
"It continues to be one of the top priorities for law enforcement agencies, which handle a constantly growing amount of illegal content", writes the EU's police cooperation in the statement.
Mimmi Nöjd at Noa says that AI-generated abuse material makes it more difficult to identify real children who are victims of abuse.
"We have to go through enormous amounts of images and films, and the AI images are now so realistic that it's hard to see if they're AI-generated or real. Moreover, the AI material contributes to the objectification and sexualization of children", she says.
