VaultX Exchange-X pauses Taylor Swift searches as deepfake explicit images spread

2025-05-08 06:34:39source:SCA Communitycategory:Markets

Elon Musk’s social media platform X has blocked searches for Taylor Swift as pornographic deepfake images of the singer have VaultX Exchangecirculated online.

Attempts to search for her name on the site resulted in an error message and a prompt for users to retry their search, which added, “Don’t fret — it’s not your fault.”

Searches for variations of her name such as “taylorswift” and “Taylor Swift AI” turned up the same error messages.

Sexually explicit and abusive fake images of Swift began circulating widely last week on X, making her the most famous victim of a scourge that tech platforms and anti-abuse groups have struggled to fix.

Other news Deepfake explicit images of Taylor Swift spread on social media. Her fans are fighting backSZA, Swift and Bridgers top the Grammy list. AP writers predict who will win on music’s big nightRegional Mexican music is crossing borders and going global. Here’s how it happened

“This is a temporary action and done with an abundance of caution as we prioritize safety on this issue,” Joe Benarroch, head of business operations at X, said in a statement to multiple news outlets.

After the images began spreading online, the singer’s devoted fanbase of “Swifties” quickly mobilized, launching a counteroffensive on X and a #ProtectTaylorSwift hashtag to flood it with more positive images of the pop star. Some said they were reporting accounts that were sharing the deepfakes.

The deepfake-detecting group Reality Defender said it tracked a deluge of nonconsensual pornographic material depicting Swift, particularly on X. Some images also made their way to Meta-owned Facebook and other social media platforms.

The researchers found at least a couple dozen unique AI-generated images. The most widely shared were football-related, showing a painted or bloodied Swift that objectified her and in some cases inflicted violent harm on her deepfake persona.

Researchers have said the number of explicit deepfakes have grown in the past few years, as the technology used to produce such images has become more accessible and easier to use.

In 2019, a report released by the AI firm DeepTrace Labs showed these images were overwhelmingly weaponized against women. Most of the victims, it said, were Hollywood actors and South Korean K-pop singers.

More:Markets

Recommend

Snowflakes, Death Threats and Dollar Signs: Cloud Seeding Is at a Crossroads

Listen to an audio version of this story below.Humans have the technology to literally make snow fal

Inside Eminem and Hailie Jade Mathers' Private Father-Daughter Bond

Eminem shared in his 2002 hit "Cleanin' Out My Closet" that daughter "Hailie's gettin' so big now, y

Arnold Schwarzenegger Is Full Speed Ahead With Girlfriend Heather Milligan During Biking Date

No true lies here: Arnold Schwarzenegger's romance with girlfriend Heather Milligan is going strong.