A Family Poisoned After Consuming Mushrooms Identified Using an Online-Bought Guide: Discovered the Book Was AI-Written

A Reddit user, @LegalAdviceUK, posted that their spouse purchased a British mushroom identification guide from a major online retailer. The guide, titled similarly to "British Mushrooms: A Safe Edible Mushroom Foraging Guide," contained various mushroom images to aid consumers in identifying mushrooms. Tragically, the family suffered poisoning and hospitalization after consuming mushrooms picked according to the guide.

Photo: AI-generated mushroom image, unrelated to the mentioned book

Upon closer inspection, the user noticed inaccuracies in the book and suspected that both the content and images might have been generated by AI. This suspicion arose particularly because two sections ended with:

"In conclusion, morels are a delicious treat that can be enjoyed from August to the end of summer. If there's anything else I can help with, please let me know."

Frequent AI users would likely recognize this as AI-generated content. It seems the book's editor failed to thoroughly proofread and inadvertently included AI's final responses.

After contacting the online retailer, the platform requested the book be returned for a refund. The user expressed concern that returning the book would eliminate all evidence, especially since the family sought compensation for their hospitalization.

It's noteworthy that the retailer's approach was quite blunt, removing the book from the user's purchase history. However, the received emails remained unrevoked, fortunately preserving some evidence, as most emails cannot be retracted after a certain period.

The user emphasized they were unaware the book was AI-generated, as there was no such disclosure on the website. Considering the complexity of distinguishing toxic from non-toxic mushrooms, relying on AI-generated content and images for consumption guidance is undoubtedly irresponsible.

The user is now considering seeking compensation and reporting the book's editor and publisher for criminal conduct. (The user did not disclose the specific book title or the purchasing website.)