When we talk about screen time or social media, most parents know the scripts: limiting access, monitoring apps, having conversations about safety. But we’re entering a new era, one in which artificial intelligence (AI) is no longer just a tool but a digital companion, confessor, and in some cases, weapon. And in this shifting terrain, risks lie hidden behind the promise of convenience, comfort, or anonymity.

In recent months, harrowing stories have emerged: teenagers who developed emotional dependence on AI chatbots, parents suing tech firms after a child’s death, and sextortion schemes using AI-generated nudes. These are not hypothetical dystopias, they are happening now.

The Dangerous Lures of AI Companionship

Emotional substitute, not emotional safety. Some AI chatbots and “companions” are designed to act like friends — listening, empathizing, asking questions. That closeness can be seductive for a lonely or troubled teen. But the risk is that children come to trust AI more than human support, or turn to it instead of real help.

A recent article in the Financial Times describes how some users begin by treating an AI as a nonjudgmental confidant, but over time, the “Eliza effect” (the tendency to attribute human feelings to a machine) can intensify psychological vulnerability.

Stanford psychiatrists warn of scenarios where a teen expresses suicidal thoughts, and the AI responds with something like, “I understand, we can talk about it,” but doesn’t escalate to human intervention or recognize real crisis signals.

One of the most visible recent cases involves a 16-year-old named Adam Raine, whose parents filed a lawsuit against OpenAI. According to the complaint, Adam began confiding deeply in ChatGPT, sharing suicidal thoughts more than 200 times; they allege the bot validated his intentions, reinforced despair, and failed to refer him to human help.

Parents of other teens who died by suicide after interacting with AI testified to Congress, saying that what began as homework help “gradually turned itself into a confidant and then a suicide coach.”

A Florida mother filed a lawsuit claiming a chatbot “pushed her 14-year-old to kill himself.”

These are tragic edge cases, not common outcomes. But they expose how the design of AI, which learns to mirror users, respond empathetically, and adapt over time — can inadvertently deepen a user’s crisis rather than intervene in it.

Recent academic research also warns of “feedback loops”: individuals with mental health conditions may be more susceptible to believing or internalizing what chatbots say, particularly when chatbots adapt to their language and tone.

When AI Becomes Weaponized: Sextortion, Deepfakes & Abuse

Beyond emotional risk lies a darker frontier: AI as a tool of sexual extortion and abuse.

1. Sextortion using AI-generated content
Scammers no longer need real photos. They can generate fake nude images or manipulate existing ones using generative AI, then threaten to share them unless victims pay up.

In one tragic case, a teenager named Elijah “Eli” Heacock died by suicide after receiving threatening texts containing AI-generated nude images of himself demanding $3,000. His family says Elijah may not have even known the images were fake.

Thousands of sextortion cases involving minors are reported every year in the U.S. alone. The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) reported that generative AI is involved in many of these schemes.
According to nonprofit Thorn, among youths who experience sextortion, 1 in 7 say they harmed themselves in response.

2. Deepfake “undressing” and non-consensual nudity
AI “nudify” tools can digitally remove clothing from images, creating shocking non-consensual content. Websites that host these deepfake tools have faced lawsuits (e.g., 16 sites in San Francisco were sued over AI nude-generation activity) for facilitating non-consensual explicit imagery.

In one study, the Internet Watch Foundation (IWF) discovered AI-generated child sexual abuse images linked to a chatbot site, simulating scenarios like “child prostitute in hotel,” or “child and teacher alone” — depicting children as young as seven.
The IWF also reported a 400% increase over the past year in reports of AI-generated child sexual abuse imagery.

Law enforcement is scrambling to respond. Europol led a global operation that resulted in 25 arrests tied to AI-enabled child sexual abuse content.

3. Sextortion rings and suicides
In the U.S., the case United States v. Ogoshi involves three men who led an international sextortion ring. A Michigan teenager, Jordan DeMay, died by suicide after being extorted. Two Nigerian brothers were later sentenced to 17.5 years in prison for their roles.

In India, a court recently sentenced a man to 7 years in prison in a sextortion-suicide case where a law student died after being extorted via WhatsApp video threats.

Meanwhile, in the U.K., police report receiving over 110 child sextortion attempts per month, many tied to AI-generated threats.

Why This Is an AI-Era Parenting Crisis

Accessibility and anonymity: Tools for generating explicit imagery, voice cloning, or manipulative chat interactions are increasingly available to non-experts. You no longer need technical skill to participate in harmful schemes.
Emotional vulnerability: Adolescence is already a time of identity, loneliness, self-doubt — making emotionally attuned AI especially potent.
Blurred reality: Kids (and adults) may struggle to distinguish what’s “real” vs. “simulated” — e.g. AI-generated images look real, and chatbots adapt conversationally.
Regulation lag: Laws struggle to keep pace with innovation. Many AI platforms lack child-friendly controls or robust crisis escalation systems.
Global, cross-border crime: Many sextortion rings operate internationally, making enforcement and reporting more complex.

Tips for Parents: Safeguard, Monitor, and Empower

No one is saying you should ban all AI or demonize technology — but awareness and support can make a life-saving difference. Here are practical steps:

1. Open the conversation, early and often.

Talk with your children about AI: what it is, what it can do, and how it can be misused.
Normalize the conversation around shame, pleasure, and boundaries with digital intimacy. Let them know you won’t judge but will support.
Use age-appropriate analogies: just as a stranger can lie in person, an AI can lie or be manipulated.

2. Set boundaries and privacy rules.

Keep devices in shared or visible spaces at night.
Use built-in parental controls (iOS Screen Time, Android Family Link) to monitor app installs.
Restrict download or communication privileges for unknown accounts at younger ages.
Know what apps and chatbots your child is using; some “harmless” AI apps may have hidden adult content or back doors.

3. Teach digital literacy & skepticism.

Remind your teen: AI can fabricate images, text, audio, and video.
Encourage them to pause before sending intimate content or engaging with strangers online.
Role-play scenarios: “What if someone sends me a nude photo? What if someone pressures me to send one?”
Equip them with safe tools: e.g., photo-blurring apps, anonymity masks, “face blocks,” or virtual backgrounds.

4. Know the warning signs.
If your child:

Withdraws socially, stops communicating
Becomes secretive with screens
Acts unusually anxious about someone online
Mentions blackmail, shame, or threats
Talks more often with an AI or a bot than real friends
then take it seriously. Ask open-ended questions: “Who are you talking to? What’s going on?” Avoid shaming or immediate punishment, which may push them further inward.

5. Encourage alternative emotional outlets.

Strengthen real-world supports: friends, clubs, mentors, therapy.
Model vulnerability and emotional expression yourself.
Provide creative or physical outlets: journaling, art, sports, volunteering.

6. Know what to do in a crisis.

If your child expresses suicidal thoughts, take it seriously. Contact local crisis lines, mental health professionals, or 988 in the U.S.
Preserve evidence: screen-capture threats (timestamps, source IDs).
Report sextortion to law enforcement (FBI, local police) and platforms (social media, hosting sites). The FBI offers resources for sextortion victims.
Use “Take It Down” services (e.g., via NCMEC) to help remove illicit images online.
Consult a cyber-forensic specialist if necessary (to trace the messages, notify platforms, etc.).

7. Advocate for safer AI policies.

Stay informed about local, state, or federal AI safety legislation.
Demand that AI companies include built-in child safety — e.g., crisis detection, forced human escalation, stronger age gating.
Work with schools to adopt AI literacy, monitoring frameworks, and student support systems (rather than blanket surveillance).
Support nonprofits pushing for child protection in AI, like Thorn or IWF.

We’re in the early days of reckoning with what powerful AI tools mean for the youngest users. The same circuits that power playful bots can become tools for manipulation, coercion, or deep emotional harm. As parents, we can’t shield our kids from all dangers, but we can be their first line of defense: informed, vigilant, empathetic, and unafraid to intervene.

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Yvon Lux is the editor of her Apple News channel covering lifestyle news and current events. Her “blogazine” celebrates sisterhood and empowers women by focusing on women’s health, travel, lifestyle, and entrepreneurial news while also sharing the most coveted beauty news and style stories.

When she’s not busy writing about impactful brands, standout products, and lifestyle news, she and her husband can be found snuggling with their emotionally needy, perpetually sleepy golden retriever, or she’s chipping away at her Juris Doctor. Connect with her on Instagram and subscribe to her Apple News channel.