Online Scammers Exploit AI to Fabricate Holocaust Images, Distressing Survivors

An international network of spammers are posting AI-generated images of Holocaust victims on Facebook, a BBC investigation into AI slop has found. Organizations dedicated to preserving the memory of the Holocaust say the images are leaving survivors and families distressed.

They have also criticized Facebook's parent company Meta, saying it allows users on its platform to turn the atrocity into an emotional game. There are only a handful of genuine photos from inside the Auschwitz concentration camp during World War Two, yet in recent months, AI spammers have posted fake images claiming to be from the camp, attracting tens of thousands of likes and shares.

Pawel Sawicki, a spokesperson for the Auschwitz Memorial in Poland, stated, Here we have somebody making up the stories… for some kind of strange emotional game that is happening on social media. This is not a game. This is a real world, real suffering and real people that we want to and need to commemorate.

The BBC has tracked many of these images to a network of Pakistan-based content creators gaming Meta's content monetization program. One account is reported to have earned $20,000 through such schemes, while another amassed over 1.2 billion views in just four months.

The wave of fake images has been criticized by the Auschwitz Memorial, which highlighted their effort to raise awareness about the Holocaust. Survivors and families affected by this trend are experiencing confusion and sadness, feeling that their contributions to Holocaust education are overshadowed by the misleading content proliferating on social media.

The situation raises concerns about the integrity of historical narratives and the potential lasting impacts on public understanding of the Holocaust. Dr. Robert Williams from the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance noted that survivors are disheartened that their efforts seem insufficient amidst this flood of AI-generated misinformation.

In response to these findings, some profiles posting Holocaust-themed AI content have been removed by Meta, which stated they violated policies regarding impersonation and spam. However, concerns remain about the implications of AI in the context of Holocaust education and memory.