Man In China Arrested For Using ChatGPT To Create Fake News

JAKARTA - A suspect who was only identified as "Hong" was detained by local authorities and arrested in China's Gansu district after allegedly using ChatGPT to produce fake news.

According to a South China Morning Post report, Hong was arrested after an investigation into an unproven article related to a train accident on April 18 found by law enforcement agents.

Hong's arrest for "using artificial intelligence technology to create false and untrue information" comes after cybersecurity specialists found at least 20 accounts simultaneously posting fake news articles to the popular blog site hosted by Chinese technology conglomerate Baidu.

Chinese law regarding the use of social media is considered one of the strictest in the world. Police said Hong was arrested for violating regulations on "disturbing public order and stoking problems", a law that specifically includes the spread of fake news and rumors on the internet.

If charged, Hong could face up to five years in prison under normal law. However, if courts find the offense very serious, they could be sentenced to up to 10 years under extended legal provisions that include crimes deemed very serious.

While ChatGPT services are currently banned in China, their use can be disguised by virtual private network (VPN).

Similar domestically-made artificial intelligence (AI) services, such as Alibaba's 'Tongyi Qianwen', a recently announced generative AI model trained to answer questions in English and Mandarin, have received the Chinese government's blessing. However, as reported by Cointelegraph in mid-April, it remains unclear whether Tongyi Qianwen will have the same creative abilities as ChatGPT.

China's strong generative AI model could potentially have a negative impact on the country's technology industry, particularly on fintech and cryptocurrency trading sectors, where the use of ChatGPT and products built with the OpenAI GPT API exploded into popularity.