The spread of deepfake videos and images is becoming a worrying phenomenon of late. Distinguishing between fact and fiction is harder, this new tool of deepfake is raising serious ethical concerns. This scary advancement of technology has blurred the line between accuracy, originality and ethics. Using Artificial Intelligence (AI), people are misleading opinions and manipulating minds, by swapping face from one video to another person’s video and mimicking of voices. Experts have already warned about this alarming situation which in future may be more daunting and depressing.

What is Deepfake?

The term ‘deepfakes,’ combines the terms ‘deep learning’ and ‘fake’, initially referred as synthetic media or artificial media gained popularity in 2017, when a Reddit user described it as digital media that perfectly mimics someone else’s video, image and even voice. AI generated media, including images, sounds and videos that swap the real content. The most basic example of deepfake consists of the realistic lifelike images of fictional characters, that does not even exist.

Risks included in Deepfakes

As with many other technological innovations, deepfakes too, come with many negative factors.

Research says that 98 percent of deepfake videos originates for pornography, where creators switch celebrity faces onto the models, making it seem like a real video. A ban on pornographic deepfakes has demanded for in relation to this issue. It has revealed by multiple websites that deepfake pornography goes against their terms and conditions.

Google prohibits training of AI for generating deepfakes on its Google Colabortaory platform. YouTube recently updated its policies, requiring creators to notify the shared content as AI generated. META also implemented this new update of labeling your content as AI generated at all social media platforms (X, Facebook and Instagram), ensuring the reduce of risk of manipulated content.

Bollywood celebrities being victims of Deepfakes

Many celebrities, including Nora Fatehi and Rashmika Mandanna, were target of Deepfake culture.

Rashmika Mandanna

A deepfake video of actor Rashmika Mandanna, wearing a revealing black top caught the attention of social media. Later on, Delhi police arrested the accused.

The actor even shared a post, feeling hurt and expressing her concerns related to the deepfake world.

Rashmika Mandanna on X: “I feel really hurt to share this and have to talk about the deepfake video of me being spread online. Something like this is honestly, extremely scary not only for me, but also for each one of us who today is vulnerable to so much harm because of how technology is being misused.” / X

Nora Fatehi

Nora Fatehi’s deepfake video, promoting an end-of-season sale went viral. The actor even called out the brand and labelled the video as fake.

Alia Bhatt

Even actor Alia Bhatt has been in the trap of deepfake videos. The star’s deepfake video went viral in which she was seen wearing a blue floral dress and making some obscene gestures.

Deepfakes are very realistic, making it difficult for the general public in differentiating the real from fabrication. Even after a deepfake is proved, the victim fails to eradicate the damage it caused earlier. On coming across such posts, instead of ignoring, it is our responsibility to report the content as soon as possible.