E-Paper
He created an AI picture of a crocodile, sent it to a colleague. Now he is facing jail time
An AI-generated picture of a crocodile led to search operations, the halting of water activities, and a police report in Singapore.
Prefer HTon Google
Artificial intelligence has made it ridiculously easy to create fake photos in seconds. But while playing around with AI image generators seems like harmless fun, a bad joke can escalate way too fast. A man is now facing potential jail time after creating an AI picture of a crocodile that led to search operations and the temporary suspension of water activities at Singapore’s Pandan Reservoir.
What had happened?
Indonesian national Ye Lin allegedly sent an AI-generated picture of a crocodile to his colleague on August 20, CNA reported. The national water agency, PUB, received information about a reptile sighting on the same day. It led to search-and-capture operations in the area. Furthermore, the Singapore Rowing Association and Singapore Canoe Federation were told to suspend all water activities.
On August 21, the PUB stated that the picture was found to be fake. Lin, allegedly after sharing the picture, deleted the AI-generated images. He also cleared the log history on the Gemini AI app.
Eventually, PUB filed a police report. The cops later stated, “Apart from causing fear and inconvenience to members of the public, such falsehoods also result in public resources being unnecessarily deployed to deal with these incidents.”
What did the man say?
Lin, reportedly, through an interpreter, said that he wants to plead guilty to the charges of communicating a false message and obstructing the course of justice.
The case will return to court in November. If convicted, he could face a jail term of up to 3 years, a fine of ₹7.4 lakh, or both. In the event of conviction on the charge of obstructing the course of justice, he could face up to 7 years in prison.
