Russia Fines Women Over AI-Generated Bear Images Amid Rising Attacks
Russia has fined a woman 15,000 roubles ($178) after an AI-generated image of a bear created as a prank went viral and sparked fear among residents. The woman, from Magdagachi in the Amur region, used ChatGPT to create an image of a large brown bear walking along a local street and sent it to a friend in September. The image spread rapidly through messaging apps, prompting worried residents to contact police and local authorities to dispatch wildlife rangers.
The incident comes amid growing concerns over deadly bear attacks across Russia. At least 26 people have been killed in bear attacks since spring, according to state news agency RIA Novosti. Experts attribute the rising encounters to increasing bear populations and poor harvests of berries and pine nuts, which have reduced the animals’ food supply.
Another woman in the eastern Transbaikal region was fined 30,000 roubles for sharing a fake bear image in a village. In response to the growing threat, the Russian government is preparing urgent measures to control the brown bear population, which has more than doubled over the past three decades to around 308,000. More than 3,440 bears considered dangerous to humans have been killed since the beginning of the year, according to state news agency TASS.
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