Police departments around the world are warning against the dangers of a trending social media prank that uses artificial intelligence to simulate a home invasion.
Known online as the “homeless man prank,” the perpetrator convinces the recipient that an unhoused stranger has entered their home by texting them artificially generated images of a person experiencing homelessness sitting on their couch, lying on their bed and searching through their kitchen cupboards.
The trend has spread across multiple platforms, including TikTok, Instagram and Snapchat.
As it gains traction, authorities have issued warnings about the dangers of sharing false information online.
“Besides being in bad taste, there are many reasons why this prank is, to put it bluntly, stupid and potentially dangerous,” police in Salem, Mass., wrote on their website this week.
“This prank dehumanizes the homeless, causes the distressed recipient to panic and wastes police resources. Police officers who are called upon to respond do not know this is a prank and treat the call as an actual burglary in progress thus creating a potentially dangerous situation.”
In England, the trend has pushed some local authorities to report false burglaries.
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Poole Police published a warning after receiving a call from a parent whose child had pulled the prank on them.
“Not only did this use valuable deployable resources which could have attended an alternative emergency, it was deemed a blue light response,” the post said.
Ireland’s national police force, An Garda Síochána, also shared similar warnings, alongside images used in the prank.
“An Garda Síochána is aware of a trending prank circulating on social media in which a loved one is sent an AI-generated image of a home intruder,” it wrote on Facebook.
“Already on a number of occasions this has resulted in the emergency deployment of Gardaí to an ultimately hoax report of burglary.
“This represents a waste of valuable Garda resources and diverts from genuine emergency calls which require a response. There is a risk that legitimate emergency calls will not receive the necessary urgent attention, which poses serious safety concerns for those who need our immediate assistance.
“We urge everyone not to engage in this prank and to consider the consequences that may result from such activity.”
The prank is the latest in a series of AI-induced controversies circulating online.
Earlier this week, Robin Williams’ daughter, Zelda Williams, issued a public plea asking people to stop sending her AI-generated videos featuring her late father’s likeness and voice.
“Please, just stop sending me AI videos of Dad,” Zelda, 36, posted on her Instagram story on Monday.
“Stop believing I wanna see it or that I’ll understand, I don’t and I won’t. If you’re just trying to troll me, I’ve seen way worse, I’ll restrict and move on.”
Zelda’s comments follow a controversy surrounding the introduction of an “AI actor” named Tilly Norwood.
Norwood is a character created entirely by artificial intelligence, dubbed Hollywood’s first AI actor by her creator, producer and comedian Eline Van der Velden, who has expressed her intentions to sign Norwood to a talent agency.
The introduction of the AI “actor” has sparked concern in the film industry.
In a statement Tuesday, the Screen Actors Guild said “creativity is, and should remain, human-centered.”
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