From AI to Real-life Danger: Man Stalks Professor and Lures Online Strangers to Her Home

A Massachusetts man has agreed to plead guilty to a seven-year cyberstalking campaign, which included the use of artificial intelligence (AI) chatbots to impersonate a university professor and inviting men to her home for sex without her knowledge. This case, filed in Massachusetts federal court, is believed to be the first stalking case involving the use of AI to impersonate a victim to facilitate the stalker’s crimes.

James Florence, 36, used chatbots such as CrushOn.ai and JanitorAI to design customizable chats, instructing the chatbot to engage in sexually suggestive and explicit dialogues between users and the impersonated victim.

Florence, a former friend of the victim, provided the chatbots with her personal and professional information, which was divulged to users. This included her home address, date of birth, preferences, and family details.

According to court records, the JanitorAI public chatbot had the description: “[Victim] Is University’s Hottest Professor. How Will You Seduce Her? And Once You Do, What Will You Do With This Married Career Woman? (Every Few Days Her Character Picture Will Be Updated!).” The chatbot would also share her personal information and suggest, “Why don’t you come over?”—resulting in strangers arriving at her property.

Court documents revealed that Florence had also stolen the victim’s underwear from her home, photographed it, and shared it online as part of mutual sexual fantasies of stalking. His harassment of the victim continued through the creation of social media accounts, email addresses, and websites to impersonate her and distribute explicit, photoshopped images.

Florence’s harassment was not limited to the professor. He also targeted six other women and a 17-year-old girl, using AI to photoshop explicit images of them on dating and escort websites such as OkCupid, X, and Classmates.com.

Florence faces seven counts of cyberstalking and one count of possession of child pornography.

Read the full article here: https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2025/feb/01/stalking-ai-chatbot-impersonator