Guest says images altered in false £12,000 damage claim

Airbnb has apologised to a woman after an apartment host falsely claimed she had caused thousands of pounds' worth of damage and used images she says were digitally manipulated to back up his allegations.

- Shane Hickey

The London-based academic was refunded almost £4,300, and an internal review of how the case was dealt with has been launched at the short-term rental company.

The incident highlights how cheap and easily available artificial intelligence software is now being used to manipulate images to give false evidence of what has happened in consumer complaints, according to one security expert.

The woman, who is based in London, had booked the one-bedroom apartment in New York's Manhattan for two and a half months earlier this year to stay in while she was studying, but she decided to leave early after feeling unsafe in the area.

Shortly after she left, the host told Airbnb that she had caused more than £12,000 worth of damage, and submitted pictures of an apparently cracked coffee table as part of his case. His allegations included that she had stained a mattress with urine, and damaged a robot vacuum cleaner, a sofa, a microwave, a TV and an air conditioner.