UN Advisor says deepfakes rise as AI tech develops

A United Nations advisor has expressed the importance of being more vigilant as artificial intelligence technology advances, enabling the creation of deepfakes that look increasingly realistic.

Deepfakes are a type of media, usually videos or audio, that have been altered using artificial intelligence (AI) to make it seem like a person is saying or doing something that actually never occurred in reality.

Neil Sahota, an AI expert from California, explains that a digital twin is like a virtual copy of something in the real world. On the other hand, deepfakes are essentially the opposite of digital twins. They are created without someone's permission and often with malicious intent, aiming to deceive or trick someone.

Deepfakes have been utilized to create a range of fabricated news content, including a notable instance where a video supposedly depicted Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy urging his nation to surrender to Russia. In addition, scammers have employed deepfakes to generate misleading celebrity endorsements that are entirely false.

Sahota emphasizes the importance of being observant when it comes to videos and audio that seem unusual or suspicious, as they could be indications of manipulated or altered media.