AI-POWERED 'NUDIFY' APPS FUEL DEADLY WAVE OF DIGITAL BLACKMAIL

After a Kentucky teenager died by suicide this year, his parents discovered he had received threatening texts demanding $3,000 to suppress an AI-generated nude image of him.

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The tragedy underscores how so-called sextortion scams targeting children are growing around the world, particularly with the rapid proliferation of "nudify" apps — AI tools that digitally strip off clothing or generate sexualized imagery.

Elijah Heacock, 16, was just one of thousands of American minors targeted by such digital blackmail, which has spurred calls for more action from tech platforms and regulators.

His parents told US media that the text messages ordered him to pay up or an apparently AI-generated nude photo would be sent to his family and friends.

"The people that are after our children are well organized," John Burnett, the boy's father, said in a CBS News interview.

"They are well financed, and they are relentless. They don't need the photos to be real, they can generate whatever they want, and then they use it to blackmail the child."

US investigators were looking into the case, which comes as nudify apps - which rose to prominence targeting celebrities - are being increasingly weaponized against children.

The FBI has reported a "horrific increase" in sextortion cases targeting US minors, with victims typically males between the ages of 14 and 17.

The threat has led to an "alarming number of suicides," the agency warned.