09/04/2026
I’ve seen a lot of photographers posting about the ruling involving AI generated CSAM.
I was up until 2am researching. I have spent all day calling government representatives, writing to our government representatives and I have spent hours gathering info and writing this post. I’m not going to copy and paste the same viral post circulating the photography community. I want to be totally and completely real with my clients because I genuinely care about the safety of your children. I stand beside you as not just a business owner but also a mother and a friend. I am angry and I’m tired of Ai being integrated into everything with little to no regulation. I want to warn you, This is a LONG post but if you truly care about protecting your children from Ai CSAM please read this even if you are not a client of mine.
CLIENTS GOING FORWARD
if you would like me to block out the faces of your children before sharing I will most certainly honor your request. If that makes you comfortable then I will most certainly take that precaution for you. I will ask permission always before sharing a photo of your children. But please know this, regardless of my blocking out your children’s faces, they are already visible to Ai in so many other areas just on your personal device alone. I couldn’t bring myself to just jump on the bandwagon, block out your child’s face and go about my life pretending I did all that I could. I felt a duty to share with you the information that I have learned. Deciding to just block out your child’s face and call that “protection” felt disingenuous. It felt like doing that wouldn’t be giving you full honesty and transparency. It felt Like saying “hey I noticed your house is on fire, I threw a tiny cup of water onto it for you” it felt like putting a bandaid on a wound that needs surgery.
So what did I do today to really genuinely try my best to protect your children and mine?
As I stated above I have taken action, I spent hours researching and reading, gathering info to share, writing to government representatives, gathering their contact info to share with you. I decided I would be completely honest about the monster we are all facing here together. Because knowledge is power. Even if it’s scary, you cannot protect yourself or your children from something that you aren’t aware of. I want to take a look into how deep this Ai pit has actually gotten.
I want to speak from my own heart about how I see this issue and how I believe we can navigate this situation together.
The world can be unsafe but I do not believe you and I are the problem for posting on platforms that were sold to us as “safe.” And unfortunately choosing to not post our babies on Facebook from here on out isn’t going to keep them safe from the eyes of AI. Covering their faces in a photo you post won’t keep them safe from the eyes of AI, putting your profile on private won’t keep your children safe from the eyes of AI. These “solutions” are a false sense of security, many Greedy mega Corporations have likely already taken your photos and run them through their AI systems without your full knowledge or true informed consent. And If we don’t do something about it, this will continue to happen regardless of if you share your child on Facebook or not.
I want to be clear, DO NOT beat yourself up for posting your babies on your facebook account because companies have found other ways to take your photos regardless of you posting them on Facebook or not and they do it right in front of your face in their terms and conditions.
By now, you have probably seen hundreds of posts about this. Maybe you're scared because you've shared photos of your child online. Maybe a photographer like me has shared a photo of your child on their business page.
I don't want to scare you. But I do want to broaden the conversation.
We are living in a world where AI is becoming integrated into nearly every part of modern technology. Our phones, cloud storage, social media platforms, search engines, photo editing software, and countless other services that use AI in different ways. Every time we download an app or click “allow,” most of us are agreeing to terms and permissions that we may not fully understand.
I want to talk more deeply about something that I believe people don't fully understand when we talk about AI and our children's photographs.
You may be frightened to hire a photographer right now because you don’t want photos of your children to be fed into Ai programs or posted online. The sad truth is this, even if you stick to taking photos of your children on your personal phone? That information does not always stay on your personal phone. Because your IPhone gallery is not a quiet space tucked away from the internet.
AI did not suddenly appear when people started typing prompts into image generators.
AI has already been making its way into the technology we use every single day.
When you take a photograph on a modern smartphone, you are not necessarily getting a single, untouched photograph directly from a camera sensor.
Your phone can capture and process enormous amounts of visual information in fractions of a second. It may combine multiple exposures, analyze lighting, identify subjects, reduce noise, sharpen details, separate a person from their background, detect faces, recognize scenes, and use machine learning to determine what the final photograph should look like.
Your phone is not just taking a picture.
It is processing information.
And I think people deserve to stop and ask..
What information is being collected?
Where does that information go?
What happens when we back photographs up to the cloud?
What happens when we give an application permission to access our camera or photo library?
photographs taken directly on our devices are already being uploaded, scanned, indexed, categorized, or analyzed to provide us with "smart" features. We need to ask who is taking our data and why?
What information can technology derive from a photograph of our children?
And where does THAT information go?
Because the conversation is SO much bigger than whether or not you posted a photograph of your child on Facebook.
Because AI is already integrated into our phones, if you have iCloud, your photos likely have been fed into apple Ai even if you never posted the photos to any public platform.
Ai is integrated into
Our cameras.
Our cloud storage.
Our search engines.
Our social media.
Our editing applications.
Our messaging applications.
The photographs we take are no longer necessarily just photographs sitting in a shoebox underneath our beds.
They are digital information.
And digital information is valuable to corporations.
That should scare us because they will find new ways to get our photos and data no matter how careful we try to be. WE HAVE TO DEMAND CHANGE IF WE WANT CHANGE.
I think we have become so accustomed to clicking "accept" that most of us have absolutely no idea what we are agreeing to anymore.
We are constantly being asked to grant applications access to our cameras, microphones, locations, contacts, files, and entire photo libraries.
These corporations know they can take your photos and data because They send you terms and privacy policies that are hundreds of pages long knowing that 99% of the population will accept the terms without fully understanding what they are agreeing to.
And most of us are not lawyers.
Most of us are not data scientists.
Most of us have no idea what we are actually agreeing to when we hit “agree”
This information is being collected from your Device under the umbrella that these companies are being “transparent” with you by sending you their terms of service before they collect your data.
The responsibility has been placed entirely on us.
"Read the terms."
"Don't click accept."
"Don't use the app."
"Don't upload the photo."
And that is what makes me angry.
Parents should not have to become experts in artificial intelligence, data collection, privacy law, cloud computing, and corporate terms of service just to take a photograph of their child.
We should know where our data is going.
We should know how our photographs are being processed.
We should know what information can be derived from them.
We should know who has access to that information.
And we should have the ability to say NO.
The problem is not that parents love taking photographs of their children.
The problem is that the technology surrounding those photographs has changed faster than the laws and protections surrounding them.
And yes.
That is scary.
It should be.
Because saying “we won’t post our children to social media anymore” will not take back damage that has already been done and it won’t truly protect our children’s photos from being accessed by Ai.
Modern technology has become so deeply integrated into our lives that avoiding every potentially concerning system is nearly impossible.
The issue isn't simple. It is huge, complicated, and frightening.
Even if you decide to stop taking pictures of your children on a smartphone, or stop posting them online that does not mean your child is safe from AI generated sexual exploitation.
Children aren't only being targeted by strangers online. Kids across the United States are already being subjected to AI generated sexually explicit images created and shared by their own classmates.
A child can go to school, have their photograph taken by a classmate, taken from social media or another ordinary source, and have someone use AI to create a fake explicit image depicting them. The child may never have taken or shared a n**e photograph in their life. Yet they can still become the victim of sexual exploitation and have those images circulated throughout their school and beyond.
This is not a hypothetical future problem. It is already happening.
The National Center for Missing & Exploited Children specifically warns that it has received reports of children using generative AI and “nudify” technology to create and distribute sexually explicit images of their classmates. Cases involving AI generated n**e images of students have been reported in schools across the country, including middle and high schools.
That is why I believe this conversation needs to be bigger than telling parents to be more careful about posting photographs of their children.
Parents cannot control every photograph their child appears in. They cannot prevent every classmate from taking a picture. They cannot prevent a school photo, a yearbook photo, a sports photograph from potentially being misused.
Children should not have to disappear from photographs to be protected.
The responsibility must fall on the companies creating, distributing, hosting, and profiting from technology capable of being used to sexually exploit children.
I will link articles below going in depth about this issue as well as articles about children who have already been subjected to this kind of abuse by their own classmates at school. If you have a child enrolled in school I urge you to take the time to read these articles below. I can tell you I personally know individuals who have been victims of this and it happened to them YEARS ago! This has been a growing issue for YEARS.
https://www.commonsensemedia.org/articles/teens-told-us-theyre-not-just-seeing-ai-n**es-theyre-making-them
https://abc7chicago.com/amp/post/boys-school-shared-ai-generated-n**e-images-she-was-expelled-sixth-ward-middle/18306695/
https://www.nea.org/nea-today/all-news-articles/ai-deepfakes-disturbing-trend-school-cyberbullying
So, knowing this now. Do I think we should throw our phones away and stop documenting our children's lives? Do we stop hiring photographers? Stop posting on social media? Live in fear? Are you willing to spend your life this way? Will living in fear keep our children safe? No. I’m sorry it won’t. We can’t hide and hope that something changes. It will not change unless we make the change happen.
I know that I am not going to delete every photo of my children’s lives from my phone. Those Photos are so precious to me. I can’t imagine losing all of my most precious moments with my babies. And I can’t take all of my kids out of school and hide them forever at home. These companies have already taken the data, they already have it and deleting it from Facebook or my device or your device is not going to take that back.
So what can be done? What action can we take to actually CHANGE this?
Fear alone is not the answer but neither is ignorance.
We need to understand the world we are living in.
And once we understand it, we need to demand that the corporations developing and controlling this technology are held accountable.
I wrote this post today because I wanted you to be truly informed about the greater issue because really social media only barely scratches the surface of the blazing fire that is rising before us. The hard truth is this, Ai is woven into every digital thread of this world all the way down to the phone in your hands straight from the manufacturer. It is not stopping, it is growing larger than you could have ever possibly imagined, and the issue goes far beyond Facebook. companies already know how to get around the things you’re trying to do to stop them from accessing your photos and data. So by now I’m sure you’re realizing they probably already have your data and photos even if you have genuinely tried to be careful. Now These things cannot be undone. So What can you do about it now?
CALL AND WRITE TO YOUR REPRESENTATIVES
I have spent my morning calling and writing to our representatives to demand change not just for my children but for yours too! Because I care what happens to your babies and I stand with you ready to protect them.
_____________________________
Governor Spencer Cox
📞 801-538-1000�Toll-free: 800-705-2464
When I called I reached the front desk, Ask the front desk to direct your call to his voicemail and leave a message
Governor's Office�350 N. State Street, Suite 200�Salt Lake City, UT 84114-2220
If you would prefer to write to him online you can do so here:
https://cs.utah.gov/s/submit
_____________________________
U.S. Senator Mike Lee
📞 435-503-9335
When I called I was directed straight to voicemail if you reach a secretary request to be sent to voicemail to leave your message
Vernal office:
374 E. Main St., Suite 261
Vernal, UT 84078
If you would prefer to write to him online you can do so here:
https://www.lee.senate.gov/contact?
_____________________________
Sen. Ron Winterton
Republican - District 20
County(ies) - Daggett, Duchesne, Summit, Uintah, Wasatch
PHONE:
Mobile: 435-299-8531
When I called Senator Winterton, I was surprised when he personally answered my call. He told me that there are currently several bills related to AI regulation being worked on.
He also told me that if you have ideas about how regulations could be strengthened, he wants to hear from you by email.
More importantly, if you have direct testimony about how AI generated exploitation has personally impacted you or your family, he wants to hear from you. If you or your child have personally been victims of AI generated exploitative images or AI generated CSAM, your testimony could potentially help lawmakers understand the real world impact of this issue and strengthen legislation when these bills are brought before the legislature.
Please, if you have personal testimony and feel comfortable and ready to share your experience, consider contacting Senator Winterton at the email address below.
Your voice and your experiences matter. We need laws that reflect the reality of what people and children are already experiencing
not laws that wait until the harm becomes even more widespread.
ADDRESS:
P.O.Box 523, Roosevelt, ut, 84066
EMAIL:
[email protected]
_____________________________
FIND Your Utah State House Representative
Because state legislative districts are address specific, you can enter your address here to get your exact representative and their email/phone number:
https://le.utah.gov/?
_____________________________
If you live in another state you can use the “House Find Your Representative” tool to look up your U.S. House member by ZIP code.
https://www.house.gov/representatives/find-your-representative
_____________________________
All Levels of Government: Use My Reps to enter your address and find federal, state, county, and local officials.
https://myreps.datamade.us/
_____________________________
I’ve attached my personal message below, this is what I wrote to each of the above Representatives and also what I said in the voicemails that I left, you can feel free to copy this message or write your own message if you have ideas or your own personal testimony.
I love my clients and I am doing my best to protect you by sharing this information. I know it’s scary but I stand with you. We can fight this together ❤️
I am writing to you as a concerned constituent to demand meaningful and enforceable regulation of artificial intelligence.
AI technology is advancing and being integrated into our daily lives at a pace that far exceeds the protections currently in place for the public. We cannot continue to rely on technology companies to voluntarily regulate themselves while the consequences of irresponsible development and deployment are already affecting real people particularly children.
I am asking you to support and pursue legislation that establishes clear, enforceable protections surrounding artificial intelligence, including:
• Stronger protections against the creation, distribution, and use of AI generated sexual exploitation and nonconsensual imagery.
• Specific protections for children against AI generated sexual abuse material, including meaningful accountability when children are targeted or exploited through AI technology.
• Greater transparency from companies regarding how AI systems are trained, what data is collected and retained, and how AI technology is being integrated into consumer devices and services.
• Clear standards regarding consent and the use of an individual's likeness, voice, photographs, and personal data.
• Independent oversight and meaningful consequences for companies that develop or deploy technology irresponsibly.
• Regulations that prioritize human rights, privacy, safety, and the protection of children over corporate profit and the unchecked race to develop increasingly powerful technology.
This is not a request to stop technological progress. It is a demand that technological progress come with responsibility.
The public should not be expected to simply accept increasingly powerful AI systems and hope that corporations will act ethically. Parents should not have to wonder whether their children's images, voices, likenesses, or personal information can be exploited through technology that lawmakers have failed to regulate.
We need proactive legislation not legislation written only after widespread harm has already occurred.
I am asking you to treat AI regulation as an urgent issue and to support concrete, enforceable laws that protect people before the damage becomes even more widespread. The absence of meaningful regulation should not be mistaken for public consent.
As your constituent, I expect my elected representatives to take this issue seriously and to advocate for accountability, transparency, and strong protections for the public and for children.
I am asking you to tell me what specific actions you are taking, or plan to take, to address these concerns.
Sincerely,
Nickie Atwood
