Meta is investigating a wave of AI generated Instagram accounts that depict disabled women in sexualised ways, after the BBC identified dozens of profiles featuring fabricated images of women with conditions such as Down’s syndrome, vitiligo, missing limbs, or visible scarring. Some of the accounts have attracted hundreds of thousands of followers within months, prompting concern from disability advocates, charities, and regulators.
Accounts And Content Flagged By BBC
The BBC reported that several profiles post AI generated images and videos of women in wheelchairs or with physical differences, often posed in revealing clothing. One account claiming to represent conjoined twins has gathered about 400,000 followers since joining Instagram in December 2025. The images are created using generative AI, software that produces new content based on patterns learned from existing data in response to user prompts.
Dr Amy Gaeta, from the University of Cambridge, who studies how AI reshapes power in relation to gender and disability, said the internet is saturated with free and low cost generative image tools. She said that while some platforms restrict explicit prompts, others do not, or their safeguards can be bypassed. Gaeta said that in some cases hypersexualised images of disabled people are generated without explicit prompting, which she said indicates bias in the datasets used to train the tools.
Reactions From Advocacy Groups And Charities
Kamran Mallick, chief executive of Disability Rights UK, described the emergence of such accounts as horrific and said the technology was being used to strip disabled people of agency and dignity, turning lived experiences into caricatures for profit and sexual gratification. Alison Kerry, head of communications at disability equality charity Scope, said the practice amounted to discrimination presented as content and warned that AI images are built from real disabled people’s images, often without consent, with comment sections amplifying objectification and harassment.
Medical charities also raised concerns. A spokesperson for Gemini Untwined, which funds specialist surgery for rare newborns joined by the head, said portraying conjoined twins as entertainment was morally reprehensible. The spokesperson said the medical challenges faced by children and their families make such portrayals especially problematic.
Regulatory And Platform Response
An Ofcom spokesperson said the regulator is monitoring how AI is evolving and assessing emerging risks. The spokesperson said online safety rules require technology companies to address illegal content and protect children from harmful material, including abusive or hateful content. Under the Online Safety Act, platforms such as Instagram must apply their terms of service consistently, including when content mocks people based on protected characteristics such as disability.
The Equality and Human Rights Commission said the accounts identified by the BBC were deeply disturbing and stressed the need for strong regulatory powers in the digital space to protect people from harm.
A Meta spokesperson said the company is investigating the content and removes material that promotes sexual exploitation or attacks people based on protected characteristics. Gaeta said moderation on platforms such as Instagram remains insufficient and that even where safeguards exist, they can be relatively easy to bypass if someone is determined. She said large technology companies must be held accountable alongside broader efforts to address misogyny and ableism.
Featured image credits: ariapixel.com
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