Guelph MP pauses using X for social posts after Grok controversy
AI chatbot Grok was used to make sexually explicit images of people without their consent
Guelph Liberal MP Dominique O’Rourke says she will pause using X, formerly Twitter, over reports the app has created non-consensual, sexualized deepfake photos.
“This is unacceptable and possibly illegal sexual exploitation. It is sexual violence,” O’Rourke said in a post on Instagram Wednesday.
“To ensure a safe online environment, my office has removed all posts that include photos of community members and we are pausing posting on X.”
Grok, the AI-chat bot embedded in X, was used by people to make and distribute child pornography images as well as altering images of unconsenting adults to make them sexually explicit.
When contacted by Reuters for comment about the controversy by email earlier this month, the social media platform that runs X, xAI, replied with the message: "legacy media lies."
Grok has its own account on X and the chatbot posted it was aware of the pictures and “are actively working to remove the inappropriate posts.” It was also announced the company introduced new restrictions to Grok after the images were shared due to lapses in safeguards.
Canada's privacy commissioner announced earlier this month that he’s expanding his investigation into Elon Musk's X Corp. following the reports of Grok being used to create and share explicit images of people without their consent.
Malaysia and Indonesia blocked Grok after the reports and other countries have also launched investigations.
Victoria, B.C. Liberal MP Will Greaves has also announced he has stopped posting on X and said in a post on Instagram that the decision came after his office had seen reports of the deepfake, explicit images.
“Social media platforms, AI developers and corporations that profit from attention have a duty to prevent harm, not amplify it,” he wrote in the post on Jan. 12.
The move by O’Rourke comes after federal Minister of Artificial Intelligence and Digital Innovation Evan Solomon said “deepfake sexual abuse is violence” on Jan. 8, but also clarified in a post on Jan. 11 that “contrary to media reports, Canada is not considering a ban of X.”
Canada's response to controversy 'tepid,' prof says
Eric Van Rythoven teaches political science at Carleton University in Ottawa and says the Canadian government response to these images as “tepid.”
“It's tepid compared to what we're seeing from other governments around the world,” he told CBC Kitchener-Waterloo’s The Morning Edition host Craig Norris on Friday.
“Some governments have threatened legal action. A lot of governments have just come out and very vocally condemned these images and said this is wrong, some have blocked Grok altogether,” he added.
“The U.K. has probably gone the furthest, or threatened to go to the furthest, by proposing to ban X if it didn't act quickly to limit and remove these images. And if you take that global context and you compare it to Canada's reaction, well, Canada's doing very little.”
He said while Canada may not need to ban the app outright, there are a range of different options on how to respond. That could include individual MPs rethinking how they use X.
In O’Rourke’s case, she said in her statement she plans to still use other social media channels to reach people including Facebook, Instagram and her website.
“We must all call on social media platforms to strengthen their safeguards, prioritze user safety and uphold community standards that protect people, especially youth, from harmful and inappropriate content,” she wrote.