Author finds fake AI-generated books in her name on Amazon - Mashable
Author Jane Friedman discovered AI-generated books falsely using her name on Amazon, raising concerns about copyright, reputation damage, and the policing of fraudulent content.
- Incident date
- May 2026
- Target
- Jane Friedman
In May 2026, author Jane Friedman discovered several AI-generated books on Amazon that falsely used her name. The incident highlights concerns about copyright infringement and the spread of misleading content that can damage a writer's reputation.
What happened
Friedman discovered the books while checking her Goodreads profile. She believed the books were AI-generated because they resembled ChatGPT responses based on her publicly available content. The books, which included titles like How to Write and Publish an eBook Quickly and Make Money and Promote to Prosper: Strategies to Skyrocket Your eBook Sales on Amazon, were eventually removed from Goodreads and Amazon. Friedman implored sites like Goodreads and Amazon to create a system to verify the legitimacy of books and allow authors to block falsely attributed listings. Another author reported having to remove dozens of illegitimate books on Amazon. Friedman was initially told by Amazon that the books could only be removed if her name was trademarked. She believes her visibility and reputation led to the eventual removal, but worries about authors who lack the same ability to raise awareness.