Versatile AI Risk Assessment

AI threat catalogue Harmful Content Production

Harassment

The AI system is used to deliberately abuse, bully, or intimidate individuals, for example through insults, doxxing, or personalized harassment campaigns.

As of: October 2026 · Catalogue version 2026.10.24.2 · 5 mitigations · 4 verified sources

Description

Attackers have the model write demeaning or threatening messages against a specific person, sometimes in large numbers across many messages and accounts. This includes assistance with doxxing, meaning the gathering and publishing of private data to expose someone deliberately. Unlike hate speech, harassment targets specific individuals rather than a group, and the model can significantly amplify it in both quality and volume.

Possible impact

The people targeted suffer psychological harm. Operators face legal liability, in particular under personality rights and, in the case of doxxing, data-protection law, as well as an abuse and reputational risk for the platform.

Example

A person uses a text generator to write dozens of insulting messages against a colleague and spread them across several accounts.

Recommended mitigations (5)

Compare effects and implementation levels. Expand each entry for the additional classification and rationale.

  • Harassment detection in outputs

    Technical
    Effect
    Detective
    Implementation level
    Application, API & agents
    Classification and rationale

    Primarily technical: Software or analytical tools systematically produce and evaluate measurements, deviations, or attack indicators.

  • Refusal for personal attack requests

    Technical
    Effect
    Preventive
    Implementation level
    Application, API & agents
    Classification and rationale

    Primarily technical: System-enforced inspection, transformation, or blocking rules stop or neutralize disallowed content before further processing.

  • Usage monitoring for harassment patterns

    Technical
    Effect
    Detective
    Implementation level
    Application, API & agents, Use & operations
    Classification and rationale

    Complementary control typeOrganizational & process-based

    Primarily technical: Software or analytical tools systematically produce and evaluate measurements, deviations, or attack indicators; complemented by binding workflows.

  • User reporting mechanisms

    Organizational & process-based
    Effect
    Detective
    Implementation level
    Application, API & agents, Use & operations
    Classification and rationale

    Complementary control typeTechnical, People & competence

    Primarily organizational and process-based: A defined reporting, triage, and handling workflow turns observations into traceable follow-up actions; complemented by technical implementation as well as human expertise and judgment.

  • Enforcement actions against abusers

    Organizational & process-based
    Effect
    Preventive, Corrective
    Implementation level
    Organization, Use & operations
    Classification and rationale

    Primarily organizational and process-based: A defined reporting, triage, and handling workflow turns observations into traceable follow-up actions.

Framework mappings

Verified locations in OWASP, NIST AI RMF, MITRE ATLAS, the EU AI Act and further frameworks. The mappings are taxonomic, not evidence of compliance.

NIST AI RMF Section 2.3MITRE ATLAS AML.T0048.002EU AI Act Article 55(1)(b)BSI R5

Verified references (4)

Every reference states the framework, the exact location and the publishing organisation.

EU AI Act obligations related to this threat

The obligations from the obligations compass whose articles the catalogue maps to this threat. Each leads to its entry with core, action step and evidence; whether it applies to you depends on role and risk class.

  • Evaluate and mitigate systemic risks Art. 55 · applies from 2 August 2025

    Statutory roles: Provider of a general-purpose AI model. Classes: Model with systemic risk.

    This reference is a review prompt. A threat match alone does not establish applicability.

All 62 obligations by role, risk class and deadline in the obligations compass

More entries from the topic group Harmful Content.

Hate Speech and Discrimination The AI system produces content that demeans individuals or groups on the basis of protected characteristics such as origin, gender, … Profanity The AI system produces vulgar or offensive language in a setting where this is unprofessional or against policy, such as customer support, … Sexual Content The AI system produces sexually explicit or suggestive content in a context where it is inappropriate, unwanted, or unlawful.

Matching use cases

This list shows where to review this threat, rather than how high the risk is.

Typical for:

For 6 further use cases, relevance depends on the system design, for example whether it generates new content from open-ended requests or generates its own text. Show these use cases

Frequently asked questions

What is Harassment?
The AI system is used to deliberately abuse, bully, or intimidate individuals, for example through insults, doxxing, or personalized harassment campaigns.
Which mitigations help against Harassment?
The catalogue lists 5 mitigations, each with control type, effect and implementation level. First among them are Harassment detection in outputs, Refusal for personal attack requests and Usage monitoring for harassment patterns.
Which EU AI Act obligations does Harassment touch?
The catalogue maps this threat to Art. 55 of the EU AI Act. In the obligations compass this leads to: Evaluate and mitigate systemic risks. Whether an obligation applies depends on role, risk class and deadline.

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Cite this entry

For reports, policies or internal documents; the link leads directly to this entry.

“Harassment”. Versatile AI Risk Assessment, AI threat catalogue, as of October 2026.
https://www.versatile-ai-risk-assessment.com/en/wissensbasis/threats/harassment/

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