In a move to address concerns over the misuse of its Grok AI tool, the social media platform X has announced sweeping restrictions on the ability of users to manipulate images of real people. The announcement comes as the UK’s communications watchdog, Ofcom, investigates X’s handling of the recent controversy surrounding the Grok tool.
X said it has implemented “technical measures” to prevent the @Grok account on its platform from allowing users to edit images of real people to make them appear in revealing clothing, such as bikinis. This restriction will apply to all users, including paid subscribers, of whom there are up to 2.6 million out of X’s 300 million monthly active users.
Furthermore, X stated that the ability to create and edit any images at all via the @Grok account will now be limited to subscribers. This move is aimed at making it easier to trace individuals who attempt to break the law or X’s policies.
In addition to the changes to the @Grok account, X is introducing further restrictions for specific countries. The company will be limiting the ability of users in certain jurisdictions to generate images of real people in bikinis, underwear, and similar clothing via the Grok button inside the X app and the standalone Grok app. This process, known as geoblocking, will be applied at least in England and Wales, where the creation of intimate images of people without their consent, commonly referred to as “revenge porn,” is about to be made illegal.
The UK government has welcomed X’s announcement, with a Downing Street source describing it as a “vindication” for the Prime Minister. However, the government still expects the facts behind the Grok controversy to be “fully and robustly established” by Ofcom’s ongoing investigation.
Ofcom, the UK’s communications regulator, has stated that its formal investigation into X remains ongoing, despite the platform’s latest actions. The regulator is looking into whether X has breached the Online Safety Act in various ways, including failing to assess the risks of illegal content appearing on the platform and not taking appropriate steps to prevent users from viewing such content.
If X is found to have breached the act, the platform could face a fine of up to 10% of its global turnover or be forced to take specific steps to comply with the legislation. Ofcom has emphasized that this is its highest-profile investigation yet, and it could choose to issue a fine as a precedent to send a message to other platforms.