Elon Musk’s social media platform X has restored searches for Taylor Swift after the singer considered legal action due to an explicit AI photo scandal.
As previously reported, the 34-year-old 'Karma' artist was reportedly left "furious" and considering legal action after images of her were digitally manipulated to appear to be in explicit poses.
The lewd generated pictures went viral after being shared by an anonymous account on the platform, with one of the images reportedly being viewed over 47 million times.
After the deepfakes began spreading online, the singer’s dedicated fanbase quickly mobilized by reporting accounts and launched the #ProtectTaylorSwift hashtag to flood the search bar with more supportive, positive images of the artist.
X (formerly Twitter) addressed the AI pictures which it was "actively removing," saying in a statement: "Posting Non-Consensual Nudity (NCN) images is strictly prohibited on X and we have a zero-tolerance policy towards such content. Our teams are actively removing all identified images and taking appropriate actions against the accounts responsible for posting them."
They also stated that they were "closely monitoring the situation to ensure that any further violations are immediately addressed, and the content is removed. We’re committed to maintaining a safe and respectful environment for all users".
Shortly after, the platform temporarily prevented people from being able to search for the 'Love Story' musician - with terms including 'Taylor Swift' bringing up a "something went wrong" message. However, users had been able to get around the block by putting quotation marks around her name.
As it's been a few days since the scandal began, the site has now made searches for Swift's name available again.
Per Billboard, Joe Benarroch, head of business operations at X, said in a statement: "Search has been re-enabled and we will continue to be vigilant for any attempt to spread this content and will remove it if we find it."
According to BBC, a research study from last year discovered that there has been a 550% rise in the creation of doctored images since 2019, fuelled by the emergence of AI.
Entertainment labor union SAG-AFTRA has spoken out to condemn the AI images of the 'Anti Hero' songstress, saying in a statement: "The sexually explicit, A.I. generated images depicting Taylor Swift are upsetting, harmful, and deeply concerning.
"The development and dissemination of fake images - especially those of a lewd nature - without someone’s consent must be made illegal. As a society, we have it in our power to control these technologies, but we must act now before it is too late."
The incident also caught the White House's attention as they voiced their commitment to tackling AI technology being manipulated to create such appalling imagery of real people.
White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said: "We are alarmed by reports of the circulation of images that you just laid out — false images, to be more exact," as cited by Washington Examiner.
"Social media companies make their own independent decisions about content management, but we believe they have an important role to play in enforcing their own rules to prevent the spread of misinformation and nonconsensual, intimate imagery of real people. Sadly, though, too often, we know that lack of enforcement disproportionately impacts women, and they also impact girls," she added.
Swift has yet to comment publicly on the incident, however, insiders close to the Grammy-winning star have said that she was considering taking legal action.