When 14-year-old Francesca Mani became the victim of fake nude photos, she and her mother started a fight against digital abuse.

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It was a warm May day in Washington, D.C. Roses were blooming in the garden outside the White House. An orchestra was playing. Guests were served fresh lemonade.

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In the middle of the crowd stood mother of two Dorota Mani, thinking that it was all like something out of a movie.

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– It was perfect, says Mani.

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She was no neutral spectator either. For her, this ceremony was the culmination of a nearly two-year struggle.

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               SOLEMN: A number of guests gathered in the Rose Garden outside the White House on Monday, May 19, as President Donald Trump signed a law against digital abuse. Photo: JIM WATSON / AFP

 

It began one fall day in 2023, when rumors spread at Westfield High School in New Jersey, where Mani's daughter, Francesca (14), was a student.

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According to rumors, nude photos of girls at school were being circulated. The photos were not real, but created using a type of AI tool that can be used to "undress" people in regular photos.

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"All the girls were crying, because no one knew who was affected. They only knew that there were pictures. It was chaos," says Mani.

Both she and her daughter were shocked at first, but the shock was quickly replaced with disappointment and anger, both at the act itself, but also at how it was handled by the school management.

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"They sent out an email to the entire school, informing them that there was massive misinformation. In addition, one boy received a one-day suspension," says Mani. The school has not responded to E24's inquiry, but a spokesperson previously said they launched an investigation as soon as they learned of the incident. They also offered counseling to students who sought support.

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Mani says her daughter went to the principal's office to demand that something be done. But the response was not what the family had hoped for.

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– The principal at the time said they couldn't do anything because there were no laws against this, says Mani.

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So the daughter replied: "I will get a law."

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Growing problem

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The incident at Westfield High School occurred about a year after the launch of services like Midjourney and ChatGPT, when most people really opened their eyes to artificial intelligence and began testing these types of tools.

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In the months and years that followed, fake nude photos began to appear in schools across the United States.

 

Here are some examples:

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• A 15-year-old was suspended from Aledo High School, Texas in October 2023 after posting fake nude photos of ten girls at school.

• In December 2023, police arrested two middle school students at Pinecrest Cove Academy in Florida for sharing fake nude photos of fellow students.

• Five eighth-graders at Beverly Hills Middle School in California were expelled in March 2024 after creating and sharing AI nude photos of 16 girls.

• In December 2024, two boys at Lancaster Country Day School in Pennsylvania were charged with sexual abuse after making fake nude photos of 59 girls.

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These cases are probably just the tip of the iceberg.

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A survey from the technology company Thorn shows that as many as eleven percent of American students have reported fake AI nude photos created by fellow students, writes the LA Times.

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                             ACTIVIST: Dorota Mani has seen how the spread of fake nude photos can affect young girls. Photo: Pete Kiehart / E24

 

When Francesca Mani was the victim of fake nude photos, she and her mother wanted to fight for change. They began contacting politicians and organizations and speaking about their experiences in American media.

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– We wanted legislation, we wanted guidelines in schools, and we wanted accountability, says Dorota Mani.

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One day, she got a call from Halie Craig at Senator Ted Cruz's office. She was working on a bill that would make it a crime to publish intimate photos of people without their consent, including fake photos created using artificial intelligence.

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– It had become clear that this was a growing problem, especially when it started to affect children, Craig says by phone to E24.

From activism to legislation

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Francesca and Dorota Mani decided to support the bill. For them, it was important that the law not only punish the perpetrators, but also give victims the opportunity to have the fake images removed quickly.

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“All you want is for the pictures to disappear,” says Mani.

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She and her daughter attended a press conference in Congress. In addition, Francesca testified alongside Elliston Berry, another teenager who had been victimized by the distribution of fake nude photos.

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Halie Craig, one of the main architects behind the bill, believes the girls' testimony was crucial.

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“It’s hard to get traction when no one is willing to come forward. You need brave girls like Francesca and Elliston who can speak directly about how this has affected them,” says Craig.

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In March, she and other advocates had a breakthrough when they brought the first lady on board. After a meeting in Congress, Melania Trump said it was heartbreaking to see teenagers struggling with these kinds of challenges online.

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The following month, the bill was finally passed in the House of Representatives by a vote of 409 to two, after passing unanimously in the Senate.

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                    CENTER: Francesca Mani to the left of President Donald Trump as he signed a law against digital abuse. Photo: Kevin Lamarque / Reuters

 

On Monday, May 19, Donald Trump signed the law during a ceremony in the Rose Garden. Standing next to him, in a red blazer, was now 16-year-old Francesca Mani.

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“It was a big moment. This law is so important to so many people,” says her mother, Dorota Mani.

Concerned about censorship

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The rapid pace of the process was unusual – especially for a law that regulates technology companies.

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“The case struck a nerve with so many people,” says legal writer Halie Craig.​

 

The new law makes it illegal to share nude photos of others without their consent. Websites and social media companies must remove the photos within 48 hours of a victim's request. They must also take steps to delete copies.

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In working on the law, Craig used her experience, both from politics, but also from two years at Facebook.

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“We wanted to make sure the bill was extremely precisely worded so that it could survive a potential legal challenge, but also so that we didn't go too far into areas like humor and satire,” Craig explains.

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 HIGHLIGHT: Working on the new law was significant for Halie Craig (left) because it combined several aspects of her career.

Here with Dorota Mani on the day of the signing. Photo: Private

 

This approach gave the bill broad support from both politicians and technology companies, but not everyone is equally enthusiastic.

 

Organizations such as the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) and the Cyber Civil Rights Initiative fear that the law could lead to censorship. They believe it is too vague.

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“The law's content removal provision lacks critical safeguards against frivolous or maliciously motivated requests,” the EFF wrote in a statement.

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Mother and driving force, Dorota Mani, disagrees with this criticism.

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“No one will ever agree on everything, but we have to start somewhere,” she says.

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“These types of images can affect millions of young people and their academic, professional, social and emotional futures,” Mani continues.

Global impact

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The fight against AI-generated abuse images has taken her around the world with her daughter. They have shared their story with media and organizations in countries such as Germany, Australia, England, France, Japan and Korea.

 

In Norway, former Minister of Justice Emilie Enger Mehl has made it clear that the dissemination of this type of image is illegal, but she also acknowledged that the investigation may be difficult for the police.

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The Manis family's experiences show that this challenge is global.

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– We are contacted by victims from all over the world, because they have nowhere to go for help, says Dorota Mani.

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                      GREAT INTEREST: Dorota Mani has traveled with her daughter Francesca, from Dubai to San Francisco, to tell about her experiences.

Photo: Pete Kiehart / E24

 

She now considers herself finished with her political work, but she and her daughter continue to work to engage school districts and involve young voices in dialogue about the ethical use of artificial intelligence.

 

“This technology is amazing, but we need to make sure we regulate it,” says Mani.

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– Let's try to teach our society not to misuse technology to harm others.

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