Schools are facing a growing problem of students using artificial intelligence to transform innocent images of classmates into sexually explicit deepfakes.
The fallout from the spread of the manipulated photos and videos can create a nightmare for the victims.
The challenge for schools was highlighted this fall when AI-generated nude images swept through a Louisiana middle school. Two boys ultimately were charged, but not before one of the victims was expelled for starting a fight with a boy she accused of creating the images of her and her friends.
“While the ability to alter images has been available for decades, the rise of A.I. has made it easier for anyone to alter or create such images with little to no training or experience,” Lafourche Parish Sheriff Craig Webre said in a news release. “This incident highlights a serious concern that all parents should address with their children.”
Here are key takeaways from AP's story on the rise of AI-generated nude images and how schools are responding.
The prosecution stemming from the Louisiana middle school deepfakes is believed to be the first under the state’s new law, said Republican state Sen. Patrick Connick, who authored the legislation.
The law is one of many across the country taking aim at deepfakes. In 2025, at least half the states enacted legislation addressing the use of generative AI to create seemingly realistic, but fabricated, images and sounds, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. Some of the laws address simulated child sexual abuse material.
Students also have been prosecuted in Florida and Pennsylvania and expelled in places like California. One fifth grade teacher in Texas also was charged with using AI to create child pornography of his students.
Deepfakes started as a way to humiliate political opponents and young starlets. Until the past few years, people needed some technical skills to make them realistic, said Sergio Alexander, a research associate at Texas Christian University who has written about the issue.
“Now, you can do it on an app, you can download it on social media, and you don’t have to have any technical expertise whatsoever,” he said.
He described the scope of the problem as staggering. The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children said the number of AI-generated child sexual abuse images reported to its cyber tipline soared from 4,700 in 2023 to 440,000 in just the first six months of 2025.
Sameer Hinduja, the co-director of the Cyberbullying Research Center, recommends that schools update their policies on AI-generated deepfakes and get better at explaining them. That way, he said, “students don’t think that the staff, the educators are completely oblivious, which might make them feel like they can act with impunity.”
He said many parents assume that schools are addressing the issue when they aren’t.
“So many of them are just so unaware and so ignorant,” said Hinduja, who is also a professor in the School of Criminology and Criminal Justice at Florida Atlantic University. “We hear about the ostrich syndrome, just kind of burying their heads in the sand, hoping that this isn’t happening amongst their youth.”
AI deepfakes are different from traditional bullying because instead of a nasty text or rumor, there is a video or image that often goes viral and then continues to resurface, creating a cycle of trauma, Alexander said.
Many victims become depressed and anxious, he said.
“They literally shut down because it makes it feel like, you know, there’s no way they can even prove that this is not real — because it does look 100% real,” he said.
Parents can start the conversation by casually asking their kids if they’ve seen any funny fake videos online, Alexander said.
Take a moment to laugh at some of them, like Bigfoot chasing after hikers, he said. From there, parents can ask their kids, “Have you thought about what it would be like if you were in this video, even the funny one?” And then parents can ask if a classmate has made a fake video, even an innocuous one.
“Based on the numbers, I guarantee they’ll say that they know someone,” he said.
If kids encounter things like deepfakes, they need to know they can talk to their parents without getting in trouble, said Laura Tierney, who is the founder and CEO of The Social Institute, which educates people on responsible social media use and has helped schools develop policies. She said many kids fear their parents will overreact or take their phones away.
She uses the acronym SHIELD as a roadmap for how to respond. The “S” stands for “stop” and don’t forward. “H” is for “huddle” with a trusted adult. The “I” is for “inform” any social media platforms on which the image is posted. “E” is a cue to collect “evidence,” like who is spreading the image, but not to download anything. The “L” is for “limit” social media access. The “D” is a reminder to “direct” victims to help.
“The fact that that acronym is six steps I think shows that this issue is really complicated,” she said.
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A school bus carries children at the end of a school day at Sixth Ward Middle School in Thibodaux, La., on Dec, 11, 2025. (AP Photo/Stephen Smith)
BALTIMORE (AP) — Hopefully the rest of the NFL enjoyed the respite.
The New England Patriots are back in the playoffs — with an unflappable quarterback and a coach who is thirsty for more.
Sound familiar?
Drake Maye guided New England to a pair of fourth-quarter touchdowns, rallying his team from an 11-point deficit to a 28-24 victory over Baltimore on Sunday night that clinched a postseason spot for the Patriots and dealt a devastating blow to the Ravens' playoff hopes.
“We're going to try to win the division. We're going to focus on that,” New England coach Mike Vrabel said. “I'm excited. All the credit to the players. When we win, it's because of them.”
Seven years after Tom Brady and Bill Belichick won their final Super Bowl together in New England — and four years after Belichick reached the playoffs with Mac Jones at quarterback — the Patriots return to the postseason in Maye's second year behind center. Maye certainly didn't hurt his MVP case Sunday, throwing for a career-best 380 yards and two touchdowns.
Down 24-13, Maye connected on a 37-yard scoring strike to Kyle Williams, and a 2-point conversion pass to Rhamondre Stevenson made it a three-point game with 9:01 to play.
After New England forced a punt, the Patriots drove 89 yards for the winning touchdown. Baltimore's pass rush, which was nonexistent earlier in the game, was much better toward the end, but Maye showed why he and his team are in first place in the AFC East.
New England remains a game ahead of second-place Buffalo despite losing to the Bills last week.
“It was kind of a wake-up call last week — we got a chance to win the game with a game-winning drive, and this week it was like, man, let's not have that feeling two weeks in a row," Maye said. “It was kind of the elephant in the room.”
Maye went 12 of 14 for 139 yards in the final quarter, although the winning touchdown came on one of New England's few productive running plays, a 21-yard dash by Stevenson with 2:07 left.
The Ravens, who lost Lamar Jackson to a back injury in the second quarter, turned the ball over on their final drive on a fumble by Zay Flowers. Baltimore (7-8) is now two games behind AFC North-leading Pittsburgh with two to play. To win the division, the Ravens would need to win at Green Bay and Pittsburgh and have the Steelers lose to lowly Cleveland in Week 17.
“Tough loss," Ravens coach John Harbaugh said. “We didn’t do the winning things we need to do. We made some mistakes that cost us.”
The Steelers beat Detroit earlier in the day. The dramatic ending of that game came after many fans had already entered the stadium in Baltimore, and Steelers-Lions was shown on the big screen.
Pittsburgh's win put immense pressure on the Ravens, and things went from bad to worse when New England took a 10-7 lead and then Jackson left late in the second quarter with yet another injury.
Tyler Huntley — who led Baltimore to a huge win in Week 8 over Chicago when Jackson was out with a hamstring problem — helped the Ravens rally. Flowers scored on an 18-yard end around to give the Ravens a 17-13 lead in the third quarter. Baltimore then snuffed out a fake punt near midfield and went ahead by 11 on Henry's 2-yard run with 12:50 left in the fourth.
But that was the last time Henry touched the ball — another baffling set of decisions in another fourth-quarter collapse by a Baltimore team that's had plenty of those in recent years.
The Ravens took a 7-0 lead on a 21-yard run by Henry — just their third first-quarter touchdown in nine home games this season. After Maye was intercepted, Baltimore's offense was rolling before Henry fumbled. New England tied it on a 1-yard pass from Maye to Hunter Henry.
It was 10-all at halftime.
The Patriots lost Rookie of the Year candidate Tre'Veyon Henderson when the running back left with a head injury in the second quarter.
The Ravens entered the season 22-3 under Harbaugh in prime time games at home, but they've gone 0-3 this season, losing to Detroit, Cincinnati and now New England. In fact, Baltimore went 3-6 on its home schedule, the worst mark in franchise history.
The Patriots, meanwhile, improved to 7-0 on the road in Vrabel's first season at the helm.
Patriots: DT Joshua Farmer injured his hamstring, CB Charles Woods hurt an ankle, WR DeMario Douglas injured a hamstring and DL Khyiris Tonga hurt a foot.
Ravens: G Andrew Vorhees injured a foot.
Patriots: At the New York Jets next Sunday.
Ravens: At Green Bay on Saturday night.
AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl
New England Patriots quarterback Drake Maye (10) passes against the Baltimore Ravens during the second half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Dec. 21, 2025, in Baltimore. (AP Photo/Stephanie Scarbrough)
Baltimore Ravens wide receiver Zay Flowers (4) walks off the field after an NFL football game against the New England Patriots, Sunday, Dec. 21, 2025, in Baltimore. (AP Photo/Nick Wass)
New England Patriots wide receiver Stefon Diggs (8) runs against the Baltimore Ravens during the second half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Dec. 21, 2025, in Baltimore. (AP Photo/Nick Wass)
New England Patriots running back Rhamondre Stevenson, middle, runs toward the end zone to score against the Baltimore Ravens during the second half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Dec. 21, 2025, in Baltimore. (AP Photo/Stephanie Scarbrough)
Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson (8) leaves the field during the first half of an NFL football game against the New England Patriots, Sunday, Dec. 21, 2025, in Baltimore. (AP Photo/Nick Wass)
New England Patriots wide receiver Kyle Williams, left, catches a touchdown against Baltimore Ravens cornerback Marlon Humphrey (44) during the second half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Dec. 21, 2025, in Baltimore. (AP Photo/Stephanie Scarbrough)
Baltimore Ravens cornerback Marlon Humphrey celebrates after intercepting a pass by New England Patriots quarterback Drake Maye during the first half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Dec. 21, 2025, in Baltimore. (AP Photo/Nick Wass)
New England Patriots quarterback Drake Maye (10) passes against the Baltimore Ravens during the first half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Dec. 21, 2025, in Baltimore. (AP Photo/Nick Wass)
