In brief
Salem, Mass. police called the TikTok trend “stupid and potentially dangerous” in a public safety alert.
Videos showing AI “intruders” have triggered real emergency calls and alarmed family members.
Critics say the prank dehumanizes unhoused people while exposing risks of AI-generated deception.
Police departments from Massachusetts to Texas are warning residents about a viral TikTok prank that uses AI-generated images to make it appear that a homeless man has entered someone’s home, prompting panicked calls to 911,
“Besides being in bad taste, there are many reasons why this prank is, to put it bluntly, stupid and potentially dangerous,” said the Salem, Mass. Police Department, in a statement. That police department issued a public alert and detailed cases in which recipients “sincerely believed that there was an actual intruder” and dialed 911, necessitating immediate response by officers.
In Texas, police have also confronted the fallout from the viral prank. The Houston Chronicle reported that officers in Round Rock, a suburb of Austin, responded to multiple 911 calls after residents were shown AI-generated photos depicting a “homeless man” inside their homes. Investigators determined the images were fabricated as part of the TikTok trend.
The Round Rock Police Department warned that such hoaxes “tie up emergency resources and create unnecessary fear,” according to FOX 7 Austin. Local authorities said they are reviewing whether those who knowingly share the doctored images to provoke panic could face false-reporting charges under Texas law.
The trend, known on social media as the “AI homeless man prank,” has been documented by tech and local outlets as it spread across TikTok and Snapchat. The Verge first reported that teens are generating realistic images of a stranger in kitchens and hallways and sending them to parents to capture their reactions, with some videos drawing millions of views.
Broadcasters and local newsrooms have echoed law-enforcement concerns: ABC’s Good Morning America highlighted warnings from departments that the prank wastes emergency resources and can lead to dangerous misunderstandings; stations in Michigan and Minnesota reported similar advisories.
TikTok said it had added labels to videos NBC had flagged to clarify that they are AI-generated. The company’s transparency filings to California under AB 587 also outline enforcement steps, including content removal and account bans when posts violate those rules.
Celebrity attention has amplified the trend’s reach. People chronicled examples of viral posts, including a father who called his son 21 times after receiving a doctored image, and noted that GMA co-host Michael Strahan said he briefly “freaked out” when an assistant sent him a manipulated photo.
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