P.E.I. RCMP Report Surge in AI-Generated Child Sexual Abuse Cases

In a recent CBC News report, Prince Edward Island RCMP revealed a troubling surge in child sexual abuse cases involving artificial intelligence, with officers now estimating that a third of their online child exploitation investigations involve AI-generated material. The report, filed by CBC's Gwyneth Egan, highlights how sophisticated AI tools are being used to create realistic images and videos of children that are increasingly difficult to distinguish from real depictions. The development marks a significant shift in the landscape of online child exploitation, forcing Canadian police forces to adapt their investigative techniques and legal strategies.

P.E.I. RCMP Report Sharp Rise in AI-Generated Child Sexual Abuse Material, Warning Parents and Youth of Growing Threat

Charlottetown, P.E.I. – This week — Prince Edward Island RCMP are investigating a growing number of child sexual abuse cases involving AI-generated imagery, a trend that senior officers say is reshaping how police approach online exploitation. Scott Ferris, senior communications adviser with the P.E.I. RCMP, reported a "notable increase" in AI-generated child sexual exploitation material across the areas under RCMP responsibility on the Island, which excludes the municipalities of Charlottetown, Summerside, and Kensington that maintain their own police forces.

Ferris told CBC News that it is a "safe estimate" that 33 per cent of RCMP online child abuse cases now involve AI-generated material. The figure represents a significant portion of the caseload for the small provincial detachment, which has been working with its Digital Forensics Unit to keep pace with the technological evolution of criminal behaviour. Const. Tim Keizer of the Queens District RCMP explained that artificial intelligence is "being utilized now to generate images or to manipulate images of young people," adding that "it's becoming increasingly difficult to distinguish because AI-generated images are very realistic."

The Story: What the RCMP Reported

The P.E.I. RCMP's disclosure this week provides a rare window into how artificial intelligence is complicating the investigation of child sexual exploitation in Canadian communities. Cpl. Gavin Moore, media relations officer for the P.E.I. RCMP, said roughly two RCMP cases each month involving child sexual abuse imagery result in charges. However, due to factors like insufficient evidence, Moore said this figure likely represents less than half the number of cases the detachment actually receives.

The RCMP estimate that AI models are used in around a third of their cases to either generate images and videos of non-existent children for sexual purposes or to create "deepfakes" — digitally altered versions of real people. Deepfakes are often used in sextortion cases, where criminals threaten to leak sexual images to extort money or explicit content from victims. The P.E.I. RCMP recorded 26 reported instances of sextortion last year alone, and the problem appears to be spreading to municipal forces on the Island.

So far this year, Summerside police identified one sextortion case involving AI-generated child abuse material, along with another instance of suspected AI-generated child sexual exploitation imagery. Charlottetown police identified one instance of AI-generated child abuse material as well. These numbers, while small, represent a concerning pattern across all three policing jurisdictions on the Island.

Canadian Context: Criminal Code Section 163.1 and the Federal Framework

Canadian law treats AI-generated child sexual abuse imagery the same as real depictions, a position that sets the country apart from some jurisdictions that have struggled to adapt their legal frameworks. Section 163.1 of the Criminal Code prohibits any material depicting a minor for a sexual purpose, and Const. Keizer was unequivocal about how the law applies: "There's no difference... There is a charge just the same as if it wasn't done via AI."

This legal clarity is important for Canadian prosecutors and police, who do not need to prove that a real child was harmed to lay charges. However, the distinction between real and AI-generated material remains a significant investigative challenge. Police must now determine whether an image depicts a real child who needs protection or a synthetic creation that, while illegal, does not involve a specific victim. This determination affects how cases are prioritised and how resources are allocated across the country.

The federal government has been under pressure to address the growing use of AI in criminal activity, and the Criminal Code provisions provide a foundation for prosecution. However, the rapid evolution of AI technology means that legislation must continually adapt to keep pace with new methods of generating and distributing illegal material. The P.E.I. RCMP's experience suggests that the current framework, while legally sound, requires significant investigative resources to enforce effectively.

Impact on Canadians: Parents, Youth, Schools, and the Sextortion Threat

The rise of AI-generated child sexual abuse material has profound implications for Canadian families, particularly in small provinces like Prince Edward Island where communities are tightly knit. Const. Keizer said young people and parents should be educated on the potential dangers of sharing images online: "We have to be aware that these images can be taken from the internet and utilized and manipulated in a wide variety of ways. We have to be socially responsible with our technologies."

The threat of sextortion is particularly concerning for youth, who may be targeted by criminals using AI to create compromising images from innocent photos posted on social media. The 26 sextortion cases reported to P.E.I. RCMP last year represent real victims, many of them likely teenagers, who faced threats of having intimate images leaked to friends, family, or school communities. The psychological toll of such threats can be devastating, and police are urging parents to have open conversations with their children about online safety.

Schools across Canada are also grappling with how to address the issue. In December 2025, Alberta's Internet Child Exploitation team charged a 17-year-old Calgary boy with multiple offences including making and distributing child sexual abuse and exploitation materials, alleging he used AI to create sexualized photos of teen girls from different Calgary high schools. That case, led by Staff Sgt. Mark Auger, demonstrates that AI-generated abuse material is not just a problem for police — it is a problem that originates in Canadian schools and affects Canadian students directly.

The Youth Criminal Justice Act protects the identities of young accused and victims in youth cases, and police do not name victims or schools in such circumstances. This protection is essential for encouraging reporting, but it also means that communities may not always be aware of threats in their midst. Parents are being advised to monitor their children's online activity and to report any suspicious behaviour to police immediately.

Reactions and Analysis: Expert Voices on the Growing Crisis

Jacques Marcoux, director of research and analytics with the Canadian Centre for Child Protection, offered a stark warning about the nature of AI-generated abuse material. "A lot of these AI-generated images are also based off of the likeness of real kids in our communities," Marcoux told CBC News. Even when AI-generated material does not depict real children, the harm remains significant, he said, because the production of such material normalises and encourages the abuse of children.

Marcoux also raised concerns about how AI models are trained, describing some as "a vast scraping operation that indiscriminately vacuums up images all across the internet, and there's a lot of child sexual abuse material on the internet that hides in plain sight on pretty mainstream platforms that a lot of Canadians use." This observation highlights a troubling reality: the same AI tools that power popular applications may be inadvertently trained on illegal material, perpetuating a cycle of exploitation.

The Canadian Centre for Child Protection has stressed the importance of tracking AI-generated exploitation. "It's important to keep tabs on it as much as possible because that gives us a sense of the extent to which this problem is growing," Marcoux said, adding that "there's no doubt that AI is also growing an interest in demand." The organisation's research suggests that the production of AI-generated abuse material is not merely a technological curiosity but a genuine driver of demand for child sexual exploitation.

Const. Keizer echoed these concerns from a policing perspective, noting that the realism of AI-generated images makes his job more difficult. Investigators must now use advanced digital forensics techniques to determine whether an image is real or synthetic, a process that requires specialised training and equipment. The P.E.I. RCMP Digital Forensics Unit is expanding its capabilities to meet this challenge, but the pace of technological change means that police are often playing catch-up.

What Happens Next: Policing, Digital Forensics, and Regulation

Canadian police forces across the country are expanding their digital forensics capabilities to keep pace with the growing threat of AI-generated child sexual abuse material. The P.E.I. RCMP Digital Forensics Unit is at the forefront of this effort, working to develop techniques for identifying AI-generated content and tracing its origins. However, the sheer volume of material being produced presents a significant challenge for under-resourced police forces in smaller provinces.

The scale of the problem is illustrated by data from the Internet Watch Foundation, which reported that the number of AI-generated videos of child sexual abuse it found online rose from two in the first half of 2024 to nearly 1,300 in the same period in 2025. Its 2026 report assessed 8,029 AI-generated images and videos as showing realistic child sexual abuse. These numbers represent a dramatic escalation in the production and distribution of illegal material, and Canadian police are bracing for further increases.

For parents and youth, the message from police is clear: be cautious about what you share online, and be aware that images can be manipulated in ways that are difficult to detect. Const. Keizer's advice to be "socially responsible with our technologies" is a reminder that the fight against AI-generated abuse material is not just a law enforcement issue — it is a societal one. Education and awareness are essential components of prevention.

At the federal level, there are calls for stronger regulation of AI models and the platforms that host them. The Canadian Centre for Child Protection has advocated for greater transparency from AI companies about how their models are trained and what safeguards are in place to prevent the generation of illegal content. The federal government has signalled its intention to address AI-related harms, but concrete regulatory measures remain in development.

The P.E.I. RCMP's disclosure this week is a reminder that the threat of AI-generated child sexual abuse material is not confined to large urban centres or international criminal networks. It is present in Canadian communities of all sizes, and it requires a coordinated response from police, governments, technology companies, and the public. As the technology continues to evolve, so too must the strategies for combating its misuse.

The investigation into AI-generated child sexual abuse material on Prince Edward Island is ongoing, and police are urging anyone with information to come forward. The RCMP's Digital Forensics Unit continues to analyse seized devices and online activity, working to identify victims and bring offenders to justice. For now, the message from law enforcement is one of vigilance and caution in an increasingly digital world.

By Alex Thompson, Staff Writer

This article was produced with AI-assisted research and editorial support. Reporting is based on sources cited in the article.