'AI in itself is not bad– it’s the people using it and the wild, unregulated use of it'

Safer Internet Day 2026

Síofra Grant

Yesterday was Safer Internet Day 2026, and this year’s theme tackled the problem on everybody’s lips, AI. It’s the 23rd anniversary of the day, and the point for discussion was ‘AI Aware: Safe, Smart and in Control’.

Mullingar resident Joan Mulvihill is a board member of the IRDG (Industry Research and Development Group) Innovation Network, the Public Relations Institute of Ireland and of the Contemporary Irish Art Society.

Speaking to the Westmeath Examiner on the day, she said: "I was just walking up the street there reflecting on Internet Safety Day and what that used to mean," she began. "When I used to get this call – when I was in the Irish Internet Association – all those things still apply, so, looking at security on websites when you’re about to do a transaction, make sure you’re looking for HTTPS, and that’s security.

"It was all around financial fraud and identity theft, they were the things."

Many of these problems are the same today; however, thanks to the introduction of new technologies, financial scams have become much more sinister.

Joan agrees: "The scamming, the phishing, is so much more sophisticated. A lot of that is driven by AI as well but it’s not about AI in itself.

"AI in itself is not bad technology – it’s the people using it and the wild, unregulated use of it."

The lack of regulation is the main driver in many of the problems, particularly Generative AI.

Engines like Grok and its nudification tool are, as is widely reported, being used to create deep fakes and child sexual abuse images.

"Those aspects have always been, to an extent, almost seen in the domain of the dark web, and now that dark web is seeping up into the real world," said Joan.

"We’re putting this really powerful technology in the hands of people who are probably not really aware that they are playing with fire."

This year’s Safer Internet Day aimed to highlight this issue, and encourage conversation and communication on the importance of using technology responsibly.

"There’s been teenagers, maybe, who have downloaded the Grok Nudify app without really thinking about whether it’s a criminal act.

"They’re assuming if it’s free and it’s there and they can download it and it’s open access for them well, why would they think it’s wrong?

"That’s why parents have to get educated on all of this and not just go, ‘the world is too horrible right now, I can’t cope when I don’t know anything about technology’.

"Just stay on top of it as much as you can and stay on top of your children, make sure that you know what they’re using, when they’re using it."

According to Joan, internet safety is just like everyday safety: you just have to be aware. "Every parent has had a conversation with their child about how to stay safe walking home, how not to talk to strangers, we need to have those conversations, very clearly, about how children communicate online."

Consent is also a huge factor in the conversation. AI being used for ‘nudification’ and creating deepfakes is intertwined with the concept of consent.

"We’ve had these conversations, and continue to have conversations around consent. Did someone share this image of themselves with you, if they didn’t, you don’t have consent to do anything to their image without their permission."

But, it also the responsibility of the companies behind these AI engines to ensure they can’t be used for nefarious means. Why does Grok need to have a ‘Nudify’ feature? And why are those behind the engines not being held accountable for their creations?

"You’ve got the top level guys, the CEOs of all these large companies who are investing in AI, who are the big AI inventors.

"I’m fairly confident they don’t care about anything other than making billions and building technology, just because they can rather than thinking they should, right?"

Yesterday, the Oireachtas Committee on Artificial Intelligence discussed regulations, and the Online Safety Commissioner Niamh Hodnett has stated that she is horrified after seeing the ability of Grok to generate sexualised images of unconsenting parties.

Joan believes that while appropriate and informed legislation should be introduced, she also drives home the importance of staying vigilant in your personal life and protecting yourself, and your information.

"We equip ourselves better by not putting our heads in the sand and by really getting to grips with what this is, and having frank and open conversations."

In Joan’s eyes, technology is not the root of all evil in this scenario, rather those who make use of it for nefarious means.

"It’s the people that are using it," she said. "They’re using it to do the same thing that they’ve always done – to steal money, to steal identity, and to steal dignity."