Jenna Ortega Deletes Twitter After Encountering AI-Generated Explicit Images
Actress Jenna Ortega revealed that she removed her account from X, formerly known as Twitter, following a frightening incident involving AI-generated pornographic images of herself when she was underage.
In an interview with The New York Times, published on August 25, 2024, the 21-year-old actress shared her strong distaste for artificial intelligence. *”I hate A.I.,”* she stated. Although she acknowledged its potential for good, she expressed concern over its misuse.
*”Did I like being 14 and making a Twitter account because I was supposed to and seeing dirty edited content of me as a child? No,”* she remarked, describing the experience as *”terrifying, corrupt, and wrong.”*
Ortega recounted that at 12, the first direct message she opened on Twitter contained an unsolicited explicit image of a man. *”And that was just the beginning of what was to come,”* she said, emphasizing the overwhelming nature of the unwanted content following the release of her hit series *”Wednesday.”*
*”It was disgusting, and it made me feel bad,”* she stated. *”I thought, ‘Oh, I don’t need this anymore.’ So I dropped it.”*
Ortega’s experience reflects a larger issue of **nonconsensual AI-generated deepfakes**, which have become prevalent online. Research indicated that more explicit deepfake videos were uploaded in 2023 than in all previous years combined. Ortega is among the top 40 most-targeted female celebrities on major deepfake websites.
Earlier this year, the AI app called Perky AI misleadingly advertised its capability to undress women using altered images of Ortega at 16.
Additionally, actress Xochitl Gomez, known for her role in *”Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness,”* reported that at 17, she discovered nonconsensual deepfakes of herself online. Similarly, singer Taylor Swift faced a wave of explicit deepfakes that led to significant reactions on social media platforms.
This issue is not confined to celebrities. Increasingly, teenage girls in the U.S. have become victims of fake nude content generated by AI. Despite some states introducing regulations, the legal landscape is inconsistent and often ineffective.
In one instance, a California middle school expelled five students for creating and sharing AI-generated nude images of classmates, raising alarm within the community.
Overall, Ortega’s story sheds light on the urgent need for better protections against the misuse of AI technology, particularly for vulnerable individuals.
Author: Angela Yang
Culture and Trends Reporter, NBC News
