AI Incidents
Real-world cases where AI systems caused harm, classified by risk domain and entity. Data sourced from 
AIID and classified by 
MIT AI Risk Initiative. CC BY-SA 4.0
1,751 incidents
California Police Turned on Music to Allegedly Trigger Instagram’s DCMA to Avoid Being Live-Streamed
A police officer in Beverly Hills played copyrighted music on his phone when realizing that his interactions were being recorded on a livestream, allegedly hoping the Instagram's automated copyright detection system to end or mute the stream.
AI-Generated Deepfakes Reportedly Derailed Political Career of Florida Official
Sabrina Javellana, a Florida politician, was reportedly targeted with AI-generated deepfake pornography in February 2021, which was spread online, leading to severe emotional distress and her eventual withdrawal from public life.
Remote Proctoring Facial-Detection Software Reportedly Failed to Detect Black Student During Lab Quiz
In February 2021, a Black college student, Amaya Ross, reportedly tried to take a remote biology lab quiz using proctoring software that could not detect her face. Ross said she spent 45 minutes changing lights, shades, position, and background before pointing an LED flashlight at her face so the app would work; the quiz itself was only 30 minutes.
Queensland Man Allegedly Distributed Purportedly AI-Generated Sexual Posters Falsely Advertising Women for Sex
Queensland police in Australia allege that a man used AI to place at least eight women's faces onto explicit images and displayed posters containing their names, social media accounts, employment details, and false claims that they offered sexual services. The alleged campaign ran from February 2021 through May 2026.
Amazon’s Search and Recommendation Algorithms Found by Auditors to Have Boosted Products That Contained Vaccine Misinformation
Evidence of the "filter-bubble effect" were found by vaccine-misinformation researchers in Amazon's recommendations, where its algorithms presented users who performed actions on misinformative products with more misinfomative products.
Facebook's Automated Moderation Mistakenly Flagged Landmark's Name as Offensive
Facebook's automated system mistakenly labelled posts featuring the seafaring landmark Plymouth Hoe as misogynistic.
Facebook Recommended Military Gear Ads Despite Pause on Weapons Accessories Ads
Facebook’s algorithmic recommendations reportedly continued showing advertisements for gun accessories and military gear, despite Facebook’s halt on weapons accessories ads following the US Capitol attack.
Israeli Tax Authority Reportedly Used an Opaque Automated System to Issue a Fine, Declining to Explain or Disclose the Underlying Calculation
An Israeli farmer, Moshe Har Shemesh, reportedly received a fine generated by a Tax Authority software system whose calculation officials were allegedly unable to explain. When the farmer reportedly sought access to the program or its source code to understand the basis for the amount, the authority allegedly refused, citing security concerns and the difficulty of extracting the embedded guidelines. The dispute reportedly later moved into legal proceedings focused on whether code and automated decision rules constitute information subject to public disclosure.
Hawaii Police Deployed Robot Dog to Patrol a Homeless Encampment
Honolulu Police Department spent federal pandemic relief funds on a robot dog to take body temperatures and patrol a homeless quarantine encampment which local civil rights advocates criticized as dehumanizing.
Ongoing Purported AI-Assisted Identity Fraud Enables Unauthorized Access to Western Companies by North Korean IT Workers
North Korean operatives have reportedly used AI-generated identities to secure remote jobs or impersonate employers in order to infiltrate companies. These tactics allegedly support sanctions evasion through wage theft, credential exfiltration, and malware deployment. Workers reportedly use fake resumes, VPNs, and face-altering tools; some deploy malware like OtterCookie after embedding, while others lure targets via spoofed job interviews. AI systems are reportedly used to generate fake resumes, alter profile photos, and assist in real-time responses during video interviews.
XPeng Motors Fined For Illegal Collection of Consumers’ Faces Using Facial Recognition Cameras
The Chinese electric vehicle (EV) firm XPeng Motors was fined by local market regulators for illegally collecting in-store customers’ facial images without their consent for six months.
TikTok’s Content Moderation Allegedly Failed to Adequately Take down Videos Promoting Eating Disorders
Videos promoting eating disorders evaded TikTok's automated violation detection system without difficulty via common misspellings of search terms, bypassing its ban of violating hashtags such as "proana" and "anorexia".
Robot in Chinese Shopping Mall Fell off the Escalator, Knocking down Passengers
A shopping guide robot deployed by the Fuzhou Zhongfang Marlboro Mall was shown on video allegedly walking to the escalator by itself, falling down, and knocking over passengers, which prompted its suspension.
FaceApp Predicted Different Genders for Similar User Photos with Slight Variations
FaceApp’s algorithm was reported by a user to have predicted different genders for two mostly identical facial photos with only a slight difference in eyebrow thickness.
Korean Chatbot Luda Reportedly Made Offensive Remarks Towards Minority Groups in South Korea
A Korean interactive chatbot was allegedly shown in screenshots to have used derogatory and bigoted language when asked about lesbians, Black people, and people with disabilities.