Ireland and Spain open investigations into AI-generated images on social media

Data protection authorities in Ireland and Spain have opened separate investigations into social media platforms over AI-generated images. The Irish Data Protection Commission is investigating X, specifically its AI tool Grok, over the generation of sexualized deepfake images. Spain's data protection agency, AEPD, is investigating X, Meta, and TikTok over AI-generated images, including material that could constitute child sexual abuse.

These are among the first major enforcement actions under the European Union's Digital Services Act, which requires large online platforms to assess and mitigate systemic risks. The probes focus on whether the companies' systems for generating or hosting such content violate EU privacy and online safety rules.