In short, deepfakes come from using artificial intelligence to augment a video or audio clip by using programming to replace the likeness of one person with that of someone else in a different video. The goal of deepfakes is to make it look like someone said or did something they never did. They are showing up everywhere and consistently getting better.
The term “deep” in the name itself refers to a concept called deep learning algorithms – a form of artificial intelligence which supports this cyber-crime. These deep learning algorithms teach themselves how to come up with solutions to a problem given large sets of data. In terms of doctoring videos and audio, this large data repository contains existing videos/images/audios from one source and uses technology to compose an idea of what the person looks like from different angles and uses this “learning” to create a realistic map of the person intended for the target video.
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Deepfake technology has both pros and cons in its uses, which I’ll get into now. Deepfakes can be used in cinema and gaming to create realistic recreations of faces, voices etc. This would be very appealing to a sports game where the faces of professional players look virtually identical to the real person. An entire movie could be created around Muhammad Ali with a realistic looking character and a repertoire of his mannerisms at every stage of his life desired for filming. Imagine the pull of audience who love certain iconic figures to be able to see an amazing example of their life. One of the most iconic recreations of a famous figure was with Michael Jackson’s hologram performing at the Billboard Music Awards in 2014.
Deepfake technology can also be used in video games to allow the characters to say things in real time, rather than relying on a set script of programmed phrases. Similarly, deepfakes could create an accurate representation of a younger actor in a movie. For example, if there is a flashback in the movie, instead of using another actor that looks like the young character, deepfake technology could be used instead.
On the other hand, deepfake technology could be used in a negative way and pose a threat to our society, political system, and business. There are large concerns that this technology can be used to create fake and misleading news to spread disinformation, which is already growing around the globe. A good example would be using it to make a politician look like they said something when in reality they never made such a comment. The Belgian Socialist party did this with Donald Trump where they used deepfakes technology while he was president to make it appear that he said he “had the balls to pull the US out of the Paris Climate Agreement.”
We, as humans, should care because deepfakes can make us question the nature of our reality. What we see or hear may not match up to what is real. When people constantly consume Internet content that can ultimately influence small (or large!) decisions, it’s vital that the true character and intentions are brought to light among all else. Governments around the world are considering the negative implications of this technology and debating how it could be regulated.