ISSAQUAH, Wash. — Washington state lawmakers will take action after AI-generated nude photos of Issaquah High School students began circulating.
According to the Issaquah School District, the images began circulating around mid-October. Though the district reached out only to the families involved, it's something most students are aware of.
"AI doesn't make it any less real," said Audrey, a student at the school.
Issaquah police said they are investigating. However, there are no laws that make this type of pornography illegal, as child pornography laws require real pictures of real people.
"There absolutely should be a law that treats it to the same severity because it has the same damage on the subject of the photos," Audrey said.
Washington state Senator Mark Mullet heard about it because he has two children at the school now.
Mullet helped pass a 2015 revenge porn bill that was updated during the past session. He said this incident shows there needs to be another update.
"This case that happened in Issaquah High School is the poster child as to why we need to meet on an annual basis so things like this don't slip through the cracks," Mullet said.
Mullet is confident a bill will be passed during the 2024 legislative session, which begins in January.
"My expectation is this isn't the time to study the issues. This is a time to update our laws so this doesn't happen again," Mullet said.
Meanwhile, students said school districts also need to create a standard protocol because this is something that likely won't go away.
"I think the first step should be informing parents and informing students that this happened, that this can happen to them, so the student body is more aware of the threat," Audrey said.