In an interview at the European Police Congress, Maria Eira discusses the role of artificial intelligence (AI) in combating child sexual abuse crimes. The Information and Technology Fellow at
United Nations Interregional Crime and Justice Research Institute emphasizes, that AI techniques can expedite the investigation of such crimes. However, since the release of AI models like ChatGPT in 2022, the paradigm has shifted: AI can now generate realistic abuse images, complicating police work as they now have to deal with virtual victim cases as well. In addition to these challenges, Eira’s institute collaborates with Interpol to develop guidelines for the responsible use of AI by law enforcement. To ensure, that technology is always used in a human rights-compliant manner, principles such as harm minimization, human autonomy, and privacy are central, aiming to ensure the fairness and accuracy of AI systems.