X blames users for Grok-generated CSAM; no fixes announced

Original Article ↗ Hacker News Discussion ↗

Platform vs. User Responsibility

  • Many argue X is deflecting blame onto users while actively operating and promoting a system that generates and auto‑publishes harmful content under an official X account.
  • Others maintain that prompts are the core cause and that users must bear primary legal blame, but concede the platform still has duties to prevent foreseeable misuse.
  • A strong counterpoint: once X selectively censors Grok for political or reputational reasons, it can’t plausibly claim to be a neutral “just a tool” provider.

CSAM, Law, and Section 230

  • Multiple comments question whether Section 230 applies, since Grok is an X‑owned agent, not “another information content provider.”
  • Several note that CSAM (including realistic synthetic depictions of real minors) sits outside normal 230 protections and can create criminal exposure for hosting, generating, and distributing.
  • European and Dutch law are raised as stricter: realistic deepfake porn and AI‑generated CSAM can trigger direct platform and executive liability.

Technical Guardrails and Feasibility

  • Some insist X can and should implement strong guardrails or downstream classifiers; others reply no AI barrier is 100% reliable and jailbreaks are inevitable.
  • Even guardrails that “mostly work” are seen as vastly better than nothing; critics stress X appears not even to be trying, while successfully tuning Grok on political topics and founder‑flattering content.
  • A minority argues tools should be uncensored and only end‑users punished, likening Grok to Photoshop or a pen; opponents reply that an always‑on, auto‑posting, viral image generator on a major social platform is qualitatively different.

Harassment, Revenge Porn, and Platform Culture

  • Many emphasize the broader harm beyond CSAM: non‑consensual porn and “bikini” edits now appear under posts by almost any woman (and some men), turning X into a large‑scale humiliation engine.
  • Commenters link this to a wider pattern: lax moderation of hate speech, Nazi content, conspiracy theories, and the monetization of outrage and sexualization.
  • Some call for intervention by app stores, payment processors, or regulators; others see this as part of an ongoing culture‑war drift where CSAM becomes politicized rather than universally off‑limits.