A youth worker has warned that children and young people are forming friendships with AI chatbots and using them as trusted adults, while so-called 'Sherlock' apps are being misused to publicly humiliate teenagers.
Glyn Potts, a former headteacher and now CEO of Greater Manchester Youth Federation, says teenagers will consult AI characters on everything from homework to bullying. He is concerned that teachers and professionals are becoming further removed from the digital world of children.
AI as a trusted confidant
“The concern from me is that we are being outpaced by AI and social media as we try to use it as an asset,” says Glyn. He is worried that young people no longer have the support they once had in school as an unintended consequence of the phone ban. Instead they are forming ‘friendships’ with chatbots and turning to AI as a trusted confidant.
“Whether it’s researching homework with ChatGPT or making friends with a fictional persona on Character.ai, they are increasingly becoming a part of children's lives,” he says. “Whereas previously you might be in my class and have an avenue of support to go to now, because it’s outside of school, you don’t.”
“We are seeing friendships forming between young people and AI. They are using AI to have conversations that they may not want to have with someone else. It remembers who you are and what you’re into. This is an algorithm. If I take it down a route of negativity it will sustain that for me.”
‘Sherlock’ apps used for humiliation
Some chatbots and large language models, like ChatGPT, have age limits on usage - but not all. Glyn says this is a concern as youth leaders work to keep up with the latest trends and technologies capturing the attention of young minds. Trends and ‘crazes’ now last a mere matter of days, making it much harder for parents, guardians and youth workers to keep up.
Currently, he says young people are reporting that apps that allow users to ‘build a profile’ of strangers are being used to “publicly humiliate” teenagers. So-called 'Sherlock' apps are increasingly being misused to make “highly embarrassing” crude and sexual accusations about youngsters that are then shared online.
There are at least two Sherlock apps available to download online using ‘AI-powered face search’ to discover ‘relevant visual matches’. At least one popular TikTok user, seemingly based in Manchester, is actively using the technology to produce feelgood videos titled: 'Making strangers feel like celebrities'.
But the element of deception involved in the use of the technology is what Glyn says some are using it to carry out ‘ritual humiliation’. “You might be a 15-year-old girl just out shopping and all the while you’re being set up to be thrown off a cliff. It doesn’t take the app long to go through your Instagram, Twitter and it allows me to build a profile of you.”
Glyn says the footage of the ‘Sherlock prank’ is being shared online with ‘highly embarrassing’ and crude accusations made about the subjects. The developer of ‘Sherlock – AI Face Search’ says the technology is only intended for users aged 18 or over and image searches of children are ‘expressly prohibited’. They say the app is not designed or intended to “humiliate, harass, intimidate, identify, or target individuals”.
Other Manchester stories
In other news, an inquest heard that Maureen O'Callaghan, a physically fit woman who enjoyed walking and swimming, died after falling from the window of her upstairs bedroom at Berrycroft Manor in Romiley on September 29 last year. Her family, who took the difficult decision to move her into a residential home as her vascular dementia advanced, say they now bitterly regret the decision.
Meanwhile, the new £300m entertainment district Medlock Square has been officially unveiled next to Manchester City's Etihad Stadium. It will be packed with restaurants, bars, a hotel and new attractions, with the first openings already taking place. A spectacular new sky-walk attraction above the Etihad Stadium is also taking shape.
Hotel rooms across the city in June 2027 have gone up in price, down in price and even disappeared off the market completely after Oasis confirmed a mega 11-night residency at Manchester’s Etihad Stadium. Ticket codes started being sent out today for ticket sales taking place from Friday (September 25) and running through to the end of Sunday (September 27). The band have warned people to 'be vigilant' towards potential scams.
