{"id":203564,"date":"2025-10-10T21:04:12","date_gmt":"2025-10-10T21:04:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/203564\/"},"modified":"2025-10-10T21:04:12","modified_gmt":"2025-10-10T21:04:12","slug":"social-media-prank-using-ai-home-invader-bluntly-stupid-police-warn-national","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/203564\/","title":{"rendered":"Social media prank using AI home invader \u2018bluntly stupid,\u2019 police warn – National"},"content":{"rendered":"

Police departments around the world are warning against the dangers of a trending social media prank that uses artificial intelligence<\/a> to simulate a home invasion.<\/p>\n

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Known online as the \u201chomeless man prank,\u201d 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.<\/p>\n

The trend has spread across multiple platforms, including TikTok, Instagram and Snapchat.<\/p>\n

As it gains traction, authorities have issued warnings about the dangers of sharing false information online.<\/p>\n

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\u201cBesides being in bad taste, there are many reasons why this prank is, to put it bluntly, stupid and potentially dangerous,\u201d police in Salem, Mass., wrote<\/a> on their website this week.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis 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.\u201d<\/p>\n

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In England, the trend has pushed some local authorities to report false burglaries.<\/p>\n

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Poole Police published a warning after receiving a call from a parent whose child had pulled the prank on them.<\/p>\n

According to a police Facebook post<\/a>, the force received a 999 call [the U.K.\u2019s version of 911] from an \u201cextremely concerned parent\u201d who believed a man was in their family home while their daughter was alone.\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

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\u201cNot only did this use valuable deployable resources which could have attended an alternative emergency, it was deemed a blue light response,\u201d the post said.<\/p>\n

Ireland\u2019s national police force, An Garda S\u00edoch\u00e1na, also shared similar warnings, alongside images used in the prank.<\/p>\n

\u201cAn Garda S\u00edoch\u00e1na 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,\u201d it wrote on Facebook<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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\u201cAlready on a number of occasions this has resulted in the emergency deployment of Garda\u00ed to an ultimately hoax report of burglary.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis 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.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe urge everyone not to engage in this prank and to consider the consequences that may result from such activity.\u201d<\/p>\n

The prank is the latest in a series of AI-induced controversies circulating online.<\/p>\n

Earlier this week, Robin Williams\u2019 daughter, Zelda Williams<\/a>, issued a public plea asking people to stop sending her AI-generated videos featuring her late father\u2019s likeness and voice.<\/p>\n

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\u201cPlease, just stop sending me AI videos of Dad,\u201d Zelda, 36, posted on her\u00a0Instagram<\/a>\u00a0story on Monday.<\/p>\n

\u201cStop believing I wanna see it or that I\u2019ll understand, I don\u2019t and I won\u2019t. If you\u2019re just trying to troll me, I\u2019ve seen way worse, I\u2019ll restrict and move on.\u201d<\/p>\n

Zelda\u2019s comments follow a controversy surrounding the introduction of an \u201cAI actor\u201d named Tilly Norwood<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Norwood is a character created entirely by artificial intelligence, dubbed Hollywood\u2019s 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.<\/p>\n

The introduction of the AI \u201cactor\u201d has sparked concern in the film industry.<\/p>\n

In\u00a0a statement Tuesday<\/a>, the Screen Actors Guild said \u201ccreativity is, and should remain, human-centered.\u201d<\/p>\n

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