Inc.
A Florida woman treated Claude like a private diary, only to find herself reported to the police after allegedly making violent threats.
A Woman Treated Claude Like a Private Diary. Then Her Messages Were Sent to Police
Author: Moses Jeanfrancois
Anthropic reported a user to the police after she used Claude as a diary.
According to a recent report, Carli Michelle Heller of Bonita Springs, Florida, wrote to Claude that she was planning to attack the local police department on September 26.
“I’m going to shoot up the sheriff’s right the [expletive] now,” Heller wrote, according to Gulf Coast News. A day later, at approximately 1:07 a.m., Heller was accused of posting, “This is 100% last chance I’m done. I got a new [expletive] gun today. [Expletive] you.”
According to investigators, the platform’s automated system flagged the 30-year-old’s messages and escalated them to a human review team, which then notified law enforcement.
“Artificial intelligence is a powerful tool, and like any technology, it can be misused. When someone uses AI to make or facilitate a threat, we have to take that threat seriously,” Lee County Sheriff Carmine Marceno said in a statement shared with Inc.
Heller was arrested and detained. She now faces charges of making written threats of violence.
“Users need to understand you are never truly anonymous, specifically AI chatrooms and searches,” Marceno added. “AI may be changing the way threats are created, but our commitment to protecting the people of Lee County has not changed.”
Safety systems
According to Anthropic’s Usage Policy, the company says its Safeguards Team uses detection and monitoring to enforce its rules. “If we learn that a user has violated our policies, we may take enforcement actions such as warning, suspending, or terminating their access to our products and services,” the company says.
The startup notes that Anthropic processes data requests from law enforcement agencies and governments in accordance with applicable laws while protecting user privacy. These requests may include content information, noncontent records, or emergency disclosure requests.
This case is not the first to involve AI and threats of violence.
Last month, a Florida man was arrested after posting an AI-generated image on social media of Sheriff Marceno with a head injury, running away from two people shooting at him, per a report from Gulf Coast News.
According to the Lee County Sheriff’s Office arrest report, Christopher Ashley Nimmons Jr. was arrested after deputies linked the reported post to his account. The image was reportedly posted as a comment on a post about a line-of-duty death.
“Threats of violence are something we will ALWAYS take extremely seriously. If you threaten law enforcement, we will find you and hold you accountable. Hiding behind a screen or using AI will not protect you from the consequences of your actions,” Marceno said in a statement.
Anthropic did not immediately respond to Inc.’s request for comment.
Credits: TCA, LLC.