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\n By Euronews\n<\/p>\n
\n Published on
\n 14\/02\/2026 – 8:00 GMT+1\n <\/p>\n
The artificial intelligence (AI) created caricature trend that showcases everything a chatbot knows about someone in a colourful picture, can pose serious security risks, according to cybersecurity experts.<\/p>\n
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Users upload a photo of themselves with a company logo or details about their role and ask OpenAI\u2019s ChatGPT to create a caricature of them and their job using what the chatbot knows about them.<\/p>\n
Cybersecurity experts told Euronews Next that social media challenges, such as AI caricatures, can provide fraudsters with a treasure trove of valuable information. A single image, paired with personal details, can be more revealing than users realise.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou are doing fraudsters\u2019 work for them – giving them a visual representation of who you are,\u201d according to Bob Long, vice-president at age authentication company Daon.<\/p>\n
The wording of itself should raise red flags, he argued, because it \u201csounds like it was intentionally started by a fraudster looking to make the job easy.\u201d<\/p>\n
What happens to images once they\u2019re uploaded?<\/p>\n
When a user uploads an image to an AI chatbot, the system processes the image to extract data, such as the person\u2019s emotion, environment, or information that could disclose their location, according to cybersecurity consultant Jake Moore. That information may then be stored for an unknown period of time.<\/p>\n
Long said the images collected from users can be used and retained to train AI image generators as part of their datasets. <\/p>\n
A data breach at a company like OpenAI could mean sensitive data, such as uploaded images and personal information gathered by the chatbot, could fall into the hands of bad actors who could exploit it.<\/p>\n
In the wrong hands, a single, high-resolution image could be used to create fake social media accounts or realistic AI deepfakes that could be used to run a scam, according to Charlotte Wilson, head of enterprise at Check Point, an Israeli cybersecurity company.<\/p>\n
\u201cSelfies help criminals move from generic scams to personalised, high-conviction impersonation,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n