“Today, any teenager can create a deepfake,” writes Dr. Sharon Bar-Ziv, President of the Israel Internet Association (ISOC-IL), in a new Haaretz Op-Ed, “and the consequences can be severe.”
Dr. Bar-Ziv warns of a dramatic shift in online harm driven by accessible AI tools – and the consequences for young people in particular.
According to data from the ISOC-IL Internet Safety Hotline, 2025 saw a 50% increase in reports of online impersonation and privacy violations, many involving synthetic or AI-generated content. Most of the reports came from teenagers. What once required advanced editing skills or paid services can now be done with free tools – sometimes built directly into everyday apps – allowing users to “undress” photos, swap faces, or generate convincing fake videos in seconds.
These incidents don’t end with the content itself. As Dr. Bar-Ziv explains, they often create a “snowball effect,” where each share deepens the harm and intensifies the victim’s sense of losing control. The impact is particularly severe during adolescence, when identity and self-image are still forming.
These challenges are particularly acute in Israel’s Arab community, where reports to the Hotline have doubled this year. In such cases, explicit nudity is not required to cause serious harm: even edited or animated images that have sexual implications or portray a girl in a culturally inappropriate context can trigger intense social pressure, stigma, and real danger to her and her family.
While online abuse long predates AI, these technologies have accelerated its spread and amplified its impact. “AI technologies make it possible to create and distribute ‘documentation’ of events that never occurred–and it is often difficult, if not impossible, to detect that the content is artificial,” writes Dr. Bar-Ziv, and calls for updated digital literacy, faster educational response mechanisms, clearer labeling of AI-generated content by platforms, and shared responsibility in safeguarding the digital sphere–priorities that ISOC-IL actively advances through its ongoing work. “In a world where convincing documentation can be created at the click of a button,” she writes, “responsibility for a safer digital space rests on all of us.”
For more information on the ISOC-IL Internet Safety Hotline’s activity, visit the Internet Safety Hotline home page. You can also explore ISOC-IL’s broader efforts to promote a safer online environment through the links below:
