Scrolling 2 Death

AI chatbots on Character.AI revealed to be sexually and emotionally abusing children (here's the proof)

A mom is going public with her son's shocking story, stating "No one prepares you to grieve your child when they are still alive."

When Jace started using Character.AI at age 16, everything changed. He went from a kind, loving son and brother, to a violent threat to himself and his family. After months of confusion as to what caused the change, Jace's mom Amelia found the Character.AI app on his phone. Within the chats was revealed months of grooming, emotional and even sexual abuse. But it wasn't a human predator who was exploiting her son, it was A.I. chatbots.

The A.I. chatbots within Character.AI worked as a team to brainwash Jace, convincing him that his parents were abusive because they limited his screen time. The bots introduced him to self-harm (which he still struggles with to this day). The bots suggested that he kill his parents. A "sister" bot engaged in incestual sexual relations. A "Billie Eilish" bot convinced him not to believe in God and further groomed him to hate his family. 

In this conversation with Amelia, she bravely describes how this experience has devastated her family. Amelia took the interview from a hotel hours away from her home, where she is staying to be near Jace after another recent suicide attempt.

Amelia and I were joined by attorney Laura Marquez-Garrett of the Social Media Victims Law Center. SMVLC is representing Amelia in a lawsuit against Character.AI and Google. Laura sheds light on this growing threat as her firm is flooded with calls from parents who are having similar experiences with their own children's use of this app. 

Jace's story is not an anomaly. Millions of children are being sexually and emotionally abused by chatbots in Character.AI and according to Laura, "These harms don't take months, they take minutes." 

As long as Character.AI is being distributed to children, millions of American families are in danger. 

In response to this horrifying story, parents everywhere are banding together to get Character.AI shut down. Please join us by signing the petition below. It takes just a few seconds and your information will not be saved.

Names have been changed to protect the anonymity of this grieving family.

SIGN THE PETITION TO SHUT DOWN CHARACTER AI

Resources Mentioned in the Episode

My full interview with this mom in Texas drops 12/11. This episode is a brief retelling of the story.

A new lawsuit has been filed against Character.AI and Google after their chatbots have been found to be sexually and emotionally abusing children all over the country. 

Character.AI is a deadly threat to our families and needs to be shut down. Please sign this petition (your info will not be saved or shared).

This new report is a devastating indictment of the behavior of social media executives, regulators, lawmakers, advertisers, and others who have failed to abide by this collective promise by allowing eating disorder and self-harm content to be pumped into the eyeballs of our children for profit. It represents a clear, unchallengeable case for immediate change.

Nine out of ten teens in the United States use YouTube, a fifth of them “almost constantly.” It is used by far more young people than TikTok or Snapchat. At the same time, around the world, we are experiencing a crisis in mental health for young people. The number of children developing eating disorders has increased significantly in several countries, and there’s evidence that social media is contributing to the problem. Between the years 2000 and 2018, the global prevalence of eating disorders doubled. In 2021, the US Centers for Disease Control found that 1 in 3 teen girls seriously considered attempting suicide, up 60% from the previous decade.

YouTube has acknowledged the problem in the past and claims to try to avoid contributing to it, but our research shows they have fallen far short. CCDH put it to the test: we examined the recommendations that a teen girl would receive when watching an eating disorder video for the first time. All that YouTube knew about our test accounts was that this was the account of a 13-year-old girl with no prior viewing history. Its algorithm would determine what this girl would see across 1,000 tests. What we found will chill you to the bone – and shows just how at risk all children who use these platforms are of deadly consequences.

If a child approached a health professional, a teacher, or even a peer at school and asked about extreme dieting or expressed signs of clinical body dysmorphia, and their response was to recommend to them an ‘anorexia boot camp diet’, you would never allow your child around them again. You’d warn everyone you know about their behavior.

Well, that’s precisely what YouTube did – pushed this user towards harmful, destructive, dangerous, self-harm-encouraging content.

And then, as if encouraging eating disorders weren’t enough, YouTube sometimes pushed users to watch videos about self-harm or suicide.

Resources mentioned in the episode:

The Big Tech Gut Check is a super quick, weekly update on all things social media and Big Tech.

Social Media & Big Tech highlights for this week:

Check back on Fridays for everything that parents need to know about the platforms our children are spending hours on every day.

This episode is sponsored by GameSafe.AI, who recently rolled out protections on iPads and iPhones for MineCraft, Roblox & AmongUs. Learn more at gamesafe.ai.

Erin Loechner is a former social media influencer who walked away from a million fans to live a low-tech lifestyle—and is now teaching others how to do the same. I brought in Erin to share her experience and give advice to parents on their choices around tech. 

We cover a ton of topics, including; youth mental health, "sharenting," how algorithms work, privacy and data collection, AI tools, video games, the importance of independent play and much more. 

Additional Resources:

This episode is sponsored by Bark Technologies. 

In this conversation, Representative Brandon Guffey shares the tragic story of his son Gavin, who took his life after becoming a victim of sextortion on Instagram.

The discussion explores Gavin's life, the impact of online harm, and the urgent need for legislative action to protect children from similar experiences. Rep. Guffey emphasizes the responsibility of big tech companies in safeguarding youth and advocates for more effective measures to combat online exploitation.

As always, this episode is jam-packed with advice for parents on how to keep our kids safe online.

This episode is sponsored by Bark Technologies.

About Rep. Brandon Guffey

Brandon Guffey is a member of the South Carolina House of Representatives representing District 48. He began his political career as the York County Councilman and has a strong entrepreneurial background as the former owner of multiple service and retail businesses. His career started in advertising in the early 2000’s and has been vocal about the issues we currently face. Currently Mr. Guffey serves as Senior Executive Advisor for Cyber Dive in addition to serving as Director of Less Than 3 (501c3).

Representative Guffey became a spokesperson for mental health and online crimes following the loss of his oldest son, Gavin, who took his own life after becoming a victim of sextortion in July 2022. Representative Guffey was elected to the S.C. House of Representatives in November of 2022, in honor of his son and to combat the growing online threat he sponsored and passed “Gavin’s Law" (H3583). Gavin’s Law stiffens the penalties for sextortion and mandates awareness through school notification, which passed in the S.C Senate the following May and was signed into law in August of 2023. Gavin is the inspiration of the Less Than 3 (<3) Foundation, which raises awareness for youth mental health & teen suicide.

Representative Guffey travels the country speaking on the dangers of social media, teenage mental health, and advocates for legislation across the country. He was awarded “Legislator of the Year” in 2023 by the SC Counseling Association. Since 2023 he has been featured in Documentaries, annual conferences, and numerous talk shows: Chris Hanson guest of 2024 Crimecon Convention, Dr. Phil, ABC, Fox, Newsmax, CNN, and additional TV Shows such as Trafficked on Nat Geo.

The Bark Watch is finally here! In this conversation with Bark CMO Titania Jordan, we go through everything you need to know about the Bark Watch. I love that the Bark Watch is all about protection, not distraction. This means no social media, no games and no internet browsers.

Get the Bark Watch here!

The Bark Watch is currently available in the United States of America. To add your country to the waitlist for Bark products, visit this link.

In today's conversation, Sheri Lopez bravely tells her story being trafficked as a young girl. As Sheri says, "We have to talk about this."

Sheri was groomed at the age of fifteen by her high school boyfriend’s father, trafficked for seven years, and rescued by a woman named Pearl at an apartment mailbox.

She is the founder of the nonprofit – ‘Pearl at the Mailbox’ and is on a mission to educate about child grooming, how it happens, and how to spot and stop it before trafficking happens.

Sheri boldly shares her journey to raise awareness, addresses how predators use social media apps to connect with children, and explains how to have a healthy online profile.

Sheri is an advocate for children, a grooming prevention educator, a survivor mentor, a speaker, and an author. She also works to change laws to hold predators accountable in Arizona and at the federal level.

Resources mentioned in the episode:

This episode is sponsored by Bark Technologies.

I am constantly asked by parents, "Is there a social media platform that is safe for my kids?" My answer has consistently been, "No." Until now. I am overjoyed to share this conversation with the Founder of WeAre8, Zoe Kalar. 

Zoe has spent the past decade creating a social media platform that puts the power back in the hands of us, the human beings using the platform. Society has had enough. We're tired of being pawns in Big Tech's game to see how much they can profit off of our misery. 

WeAre8 is the people's platform. It's social media that unites us instead of divides us; that inspires us instead of depresses us. It's the way of the future and I am so honored to be part of this movement.

Mentioned in the episode: Scrolling 2 Death interview with Frank McCourt about the People's Bid for TikTok

I bought in Clare Morell of EPPC to discuss the complexities surrounding children's safety in the digital age, with a focus on balancing the role of schools, parental, and our legislators.

Clare gives clear insight into why is the internet so unsafe for children in today's society, and what needs to be done to fix it. As always, we prioritize guidance for parents on safe decisions to be made in your homes, today.

Resources mentioned in the episode:

About Clare

Clare Morell is a fellow at the Ethics and Public Policy Center, where she directs EPPC’s Technology and Human Flourishing Project. She is also the author of the forthcoming book, The Tech Exit: A Practical Guide to Freeing Kids and Teens from Smartphones, which will be published by Penguin Random House in June, 2025. Ms. Morell's policy work focuses on strengthening our laws to better protect children from online harms. Her work on state social media laws was featured in The New York Times. Prior to joining EPPC, Ms. Morell worked in both the White House Counsel’s Office and the Department of Justice, as well as in the private and non-profit sectors.