Malaysia and Indonesia block Musk's Grok over explicit deepfakes
4 hours ago Share Save Osmond Chia , Business reporter and Silvano Hajid , BBC Indonesia Share Save
Getty Images Grok, a tool on Musk's X platform, allows users to generate images
Malaysia and Indonesia have blocked access to Elon Musk's artificial intelligence (AI) chatbot Grok over its ability to produce sexually explicit deepfakes. Grok, a tool on Musk's X platform, allows users to generate images but has recently been used to edit images of real people to show them in revealing outfits. The South East Asian countries said Grok could be used to produce pornographic and non-consensual images involving women and children. They are the first in the world to ban the AI tool. There is also growing pressure to block Grok in the UK, with its technology secretary saying she would back the move, leading Musk to accuse the government of wanting to suppress free speech.
Malaysia and Indonesia's communications ministries announced their move against Grok in separate statements over the weekend. The Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission said on Sunday that it issued notices to X earlier in the year to seek tighter measures after it found "repeated misuse" of Grok to generate harmful content. But in its response, X failed to address the inherent risks of its platform's design and focused mainly on the reporting process for users, the regulator said. It added that Grok will be blocked until effective safeguards are implemented and urged the public to report harmful online content. Using Grok to produce sexually explicit content is a violation of human rights, dignity and online safety, Meutya Hafid, Indonesia's communications and digital affairs minister, said in a post on Instagram. The ministry has also asked Musk's X to provide a clarification on the use of Grok. Indonesian authorities have cracked down on other online sources of pornographic material in recent years, with platforms such as OnlyFans and Pornhub already banned in the country.