According to a news report by Fox 32 Chicago News, in late February it came to the attention of Lake Zurich High School officials and local law enforcement that pornographic AI-generated images of students had been circulating among students in the district. The article states that “School officials notified Lake Zurich police and contacted families of students believed to be involved — including those accused of possessing, creating or distributing the images, as well as students whose images were used.”

Deepfake technology has been becoming more mainstream in recent years with the rise of more realistic and streamlined AI services. Sora AI, a text-to-video application developed by OpenAI, the company behind ChatGPT, quickly became the largest app of its kind, reaching more than 1 million active users on its first day. Open AI officially shut down Sora AI on April 26, 2026.

Rampage conducted a poll that found out of 66 GCHS students, most have not used an AI video tool such as Sora, nor have they sought out and chosen to watch AI generated content. However, some Grayslake Central club and activity accounts answered yes in the poll, as AI-generated promotional videos have become more common, including in posts promoting GCHS events.

Like with most forms of generative AI, Sora has had it’s fair share of controversy, such as other cases similar to the aforementioned Lake Zurich High School incident where Sora has been used to make deepfakes of people without their consent, as well as contributing to the influx in AI-generated content online being driven by social media algorithms.

Open AI hasn’t publicly stated a exact reason for shutting down, however people have suspected that it largely has to do with the amount of money and resources needed to keep Sora AI available for public access, as well as it’s controversies.

Deepfake technology and generative AI has even had implications in federal court, such as the ‘Take it Down’ Act signed into law in May of 2025, which criminalizes the sexual exploitation of victims of deepfake AI, and requires any site hosting such images to be taken down upon receiving notice to do so.

As Generative AI becomes more realistic and mainstream, local and federal courts will start taking AI more seriously, and potentially passing laws and acts to prevent the perpetuation of sexual exploitation and harm caused by ungoverned AI.