By Andrew Goudsward WASHINGTON (Reuters) -U.S. federal prosecutors are stepping up their pursuit of suspects who use artificial intelligence tools to manipulate or create child sex abuse images, as law enforcement fears the technology could spur a flood of illicit material.

Last year, child safety experts warned of thousands of "AI-generated child sex images" rapidly spreading on the dark web around the same time the FBI issued a warning that "benign photos" of children posted online could be easily manipulated to exploit and harm kids.

AI-generated child sex abuse content increasingly found on open web – watchdog - The Internet Watch Foundation said the public were being increasingly exposed to the distressing content.