An investigation is underway at Fairfax High School after reports of inappropriate images circulating around campus.
Parents were notified Wednesday that inappropriate photos were being shared in what seems to be a growing trend for schools.
“Based on the school’s preliminary investigation, the images were allegedly created and shared on a third-party messaging app unaffiliated with Los Angeles Unified,” wrote the Los Angeles Unified School District in a statement.
Concerned parents of students shared the importance of parents having conversations with their kids to avoid these harmful situations.
“Where, how do we as parents as well, and as a society take control and make it stop?” said Alyssia Pelley, a parent of a student at Fairfax High School. “You have to have that conversation with them and let them know that this is damaging not only to them but the person that they’re doing it to.”
The district would not clarify what or who was in the photos or whether they were created using artificial intelligence.
Laguna Beach High School confirmed last week that it was also investigating a similar case after a student allegedly used AI to create inappropriate images.
In March, Beverly Hills Unified School District expelled five middle school students who used AI to create nude photos of their classmates.
Karen North, a professor at USC’s Annenberg School of Social Media, says that while it may seem obvious to adults, concerns with specific uses of AI may need to be spelled out more clearly with children.
“Kids are creative and resourceful and they’re now being creative with, you know, with images and especially sexual images,” said North. “Kids need to understand that it’s not all in good fun to have this information, to have these images and to share them with your friends,”