Teen arrested in US for asking ‘how to kill a friend’ on ChatGPT

A 13-year-old student in Florida, USA, was arrested by police after he asked ‘how to kill my friend’ on OpenAI’s ChatGPT on a school computer in a classroom.

NDTV reported this in a report on Tuesday (October 7).

According to a report by US media WFLA, the incident took place at Southwestern Middle School. The school computer monitoring system ‘Gaggle’ detected the student’s message and immediately alerted security officials.

As per school security protocol, the alert was sent to a campus police officer. The student was later identified and arrested.

During questioning, the teenager claimed that he was ‘making fun of his friend’. However, considering the long history of school violence in the US, the officials did not take the matter lightly.

The Volusia County Sheriff’s Office confirmed that the teenager was arrested and sent to a juvenile detention center.

Authorities warned parents after the incident, saying, “This has created an emergency situation on campus. We urge parents to talk to their children about this so they don’t make the same mistake.”

This is not the first time

Earlier in April, a 16-year-old California teenager committed suicide after allegedly being isolated by ChatGPT and helping him plan his own death.

His family later sued OpenAI. They alleged that the chatbot encouraged the teenager’s negative thoughts rather than offering human support.

The family said that in late 2024, he started using ChatGPT primarily for studying, but also to chat about music, Brazilian jiu-jitsu and Japanese comics. But over time, the nature of his conversations changed—from school or hobbies to depression and dark thoughts.

Gaggle controversy

The monitoring software called ‘Gaggle’ is at the center of controversy in the United States. It often gives false signals and is criticized for creating a “surveillance environment” in educational institutions.

According to the Associated Press, thousands of schools in the United States monitor almost everything students write on their school accounts and devices.

This type of software uses artificial intelligence to scan students’ conversations and immediately sends alerts to school authorities or law enforcement agencies if it detects potential risks.