By Chris Baker | Contributor
Former FBI operative and cybersecurity skilled Eric O’Neill, writer of the upcoming guide Spies, Lies, and Cybercrime: Cybersecurity Tactics to Outsmart Hackers and Disarm Scammers.
On the rise of deepfake tech and the way dad and mom can defend their children, Eric explains:
- AI-generated specific content material is extensively traded on the Darkish Net, however the true risk has moved into the sunshine. These ‘nudify’ apps are being marketed on mainstream platforms like Instagram, TikTok, and Reddit—proper the place children are. At the moment’s teenagers don’t have to navigate the Darkish Net; with just a few faucets on their telephone, they’ll generate and share specific deepfakes immediately. That makes the risk greater, sooner, and more durable to include.
- It takes seconds. A single photograph—say, from a college yearbook or social submit—may be fed into one in all dozens of freely accessible apps to supply a hyper-realistic specific picture. The tech, initially developed for inventive enhancement or leisure, has been hijacked for exploitation. And when the instruments are this accessible, the road between a sick prank and actual abuse disappears.
- Schooling results in company. Mother and father should speak brazenly with children about how this tech works and the way it may be misused. Colleges want insurance policies that deal with AI-generated sexual abuse like some other type of assault. And tech firms should cease dragging their toes—minimize off the advert income, shut down the referral site visitors, and kill the viral development of those apps. If you happen to can nuke a meme for copyright, you’ll be able to take down a deepfake nude of a 13-year-old.”
Tricks to Keep away from On-line Sextortion Scams and What to Do if Victimized (Sneak peek from Chapter 11 of “Spies, Lies, and Cybercrime”)
- Set your social media profiles to non-public and block or ignore folks you have no idea.
- Be suspicious of anybody that asks you to modify to video chat or different platforms.
- Don’t belief every part you see. On-line identities may be misleading and the picture you see could possibly be a lure.
- Assume that each {photograph} you ship to anybody on-line could possibly be utilized by a felony. By no means ship a nude or specific {photograph} to anybody.
- Report all extortion makes an attempt. You aren’t alone in what’s an enormous crime. Mother and father and legislation enforcement are right here to assist.
- Protect proof for legislation enforcement evaluate. Don’t delete info out of your telephone till legislation enforcement has a possibility to evaluate it. This proof would result in the arrest of the individual extorting you.
- Request elimination of your pictures with every of the key search engines like google and yahoo and at http://takeitdown.ncmec.org.
ABOUT ERIC O’NEILL —
Eric O’Neill is a cybersecurity skilled, legendary FBI operative, legal professional, and founding father of The Georgetown Group and NeXasure AI which works with organizations to guard themselves in opposition to cybercriminals whose complete thefts represent the world’s third largest financial system. He’s an honors graduate of Auburn College and the George Washington College College of Legislation. His newest guide is Spies, Lies, and Cybercrime: Cybersecurity Techniques to Outsmart Hackers and Disarm Scammers (HarperCollins, Oct 2025).
