AI Deepfakes

Extracted Attributes

Deepfake

Deepfakes (a portmanteau of 'deep learning' and 'fake') are images, videos, or audio that have been edited or generated using artificial intelligence, AI-based tools or audio-video editing software. They may depict real or fictional people and are considered a form of synthetic media, that is media that is usually created by artificial intelligence systems by combining various media elements into a new media artifact. While the act of creating fake content is not new, deepfakes uniquely leverage machine learning and artificial intelligence techniques, including facial recognition algorithms and artificial neural networks such as variational autoencoders and generative adversarial networks (GANs). In turn, the field of image forensics has worked to develop techniques to detect manipulated images. Deepfakes have garnered widespread attention for their potential use in creating child sexual abuse material, celebrity pornographic videos, revenge porn, fake news, hoaxes, bullying, and financial fraud. Academics have raised concerns about the potential for deepfakes to promote disinformation and hate speech, as well as interfere with elections. In response, the information technology industry and governments have proposed recommendations and methods to detect and mitigate their use. Academic research has also delved deeper into the factors driving deepfake engagement online as well as potential countermeasures to malicious application of deepfakes. From traditional entertainment to gaming, deepfake technology has evolved to be increasingly convincing and available to the public, allowing for the disruption of the entertainment and media industries.

Web Search Results

• [PDF] The Rise of Artificial Intelligence and Deepfakes

  created by AI technologies that are generally meant to be deceptive—are a particularly significant and growing tool for misinformation and digital impersonation. Deepfakes are generated by machine-learning algorithms that can create realistic digital likenesses of indviduals with-out permission. When execution is excellent, the result can be an extremely believable— but totally fabricated—a text, video or audio clip of a person doing or saying something that they did not. Researchers have identified several possible use cases of deepfake technology with rami-fications for the security sector, including the AI-generated deepfake media is a growing threat to international security, yet deepfakes may also hold promise for counterterrorism. Through smart poli-cies, public awareness campaigns, [...] to AI, examining issues rang-ing from how to protect cities from drone at-tacks by terrorist organizations, to detecting deception in videos, to the implications of deepfakes for international conflicts. The lab’s Terrorism Reduction with AI Deep-fakes (TREAD) project—developed by North-western University PhD candidate Chongyang Gao, undergraduate Alex Feng, and Subrah-manian—specifically investigates the impli-cations of deepfakes for international conflict and terrorism mitigation while raising a cen-tral question for the global security commu-nity: Can deepfakes be used to counter ter-rorists and destabilize terror groups? NSAIL researchers have been at the leading edge of 2 EARLY FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS NSAIL head V.S. Subrahmanian, in collabora-tion with Daniel Byman of [...] Then, in March 2022, shortly after Russia began its invasion of Ukraine, the Ukrainian public was surprised to see a video of their DEEPFAKES THREATEN INTERNATIONAL SECURITY, HOLD POTENTIAL FOR ANTI-TERRORISM The advance of artificial intelligence (AI) is a growing concern for the international com-munity, governments, and the public, with significant implications for national security and cybersecurity. It also raises ethical ques-tions related to surveillance and transpar-ency. In a world rife with misinformation and mistrust, AI provides ever-more sophisticat-ed means of convincing people of the veracity of false information that has the potential to lead to greater political tension, violence, or even war. Deepfakes—media content created by AI technologies that are generally meant to

• AI-Generated Media and Deepfakes

  MENU Français # Helpful Information Helpful Information > AI-Generated Media and Deepfakes ## AI-Generated Media and Deepfakes Deepfakes involves videos, images, or audio recordings that look or sound completely realistic but have been altered using artificial intelligence (AI). Faces can be super-imposed, expressions can be manipulated, and separate elements can be combined to produce something entirely new. These are all hoaxes that are commonly used to show someone doing or saying something they did not do or say. ### What to talk with youth about deepfakes: [...] 1. With a curiosity to understand what youth are encountering or have heard about AI, ask them what they know about it. Build on what they share to explain AI-generated content. 2. Ask how youth think deepfakes could be harmful and what the risks could be. Offer information about how sexually explicit deepfakes can be misused to harm youth and discuss the seriousness involved. 3. Talk about the real impacts on someone who is victimized by someone else creating a sexually explicit deepfake images or video of them — even though the content isn’t real. [...] If a friend thought it was funny and wanted you to create AI-generated pictures of someone else, what would you do? Why? For more information, visit Cybertip.ca/Deepfakes.

• Deepfakes: A Real Threat to a Canadian Future

  Deepfakes are media manipulations that are based on advanced artificial intelligence (AI), where images, voices, videos or text are digitally altered or fully generated by AIFootnote 6.This technology can be used to falsely place anyone or anything into a situation in which they did not participate–a conversation, an activity, a location, etcFootnote 7Footnote 8.AI-generated text such as articles, blogs, and reviews, whether truthful or not, can be quickly posted online amongst ‘real’ contentFootnote 9. [...] AI capabilities will continue to advance and evolve; the realism of deepfakes/synthetic media is going to improve; and AI-generated content is going to become more prevalent. This means that governmental policies, directives, and initiatives (both present and future) will need to advance and evolve in equal measure alongside these technologies, including capacities to characterize and differentiate malicious AI-based content from prosocial and positive applications.

• Risks and benefits of artificial intelligence deepfakes

  This study provides an evidence-based integrated appraisal of artificial intelligence (AI)-generated deepfakes by integrating a cross-disciplinary literature synthesis with original opinion-poll evidence from seven European countries. A SWOT matrix distils convergent concerns—weaponised disinformation, privacy erosion, and the detection arms race—alongside under-explored opportunities in education, therapy, and creative industries. To test whether these scholarly themes resonate with citizens, a computer-assisted web survey (N = 7,083) measured perceived risks and benefits across 10 specific scenarios for each theme. Correspondence analysis and Bonferroni-adjusted means reveal a pronounced age gradient for benefits, whereas risk perceptions vary by country—younger cohorts are noticeably

• Deepfakes and the crisis of knowing - UNESCO

  By Dr. Nadia Naffi, Université Laval As synthetic media and AI-generated and disseminated disinformation proliferate, educational institutions rush to develop technical detection tools and media literacy programs. Simply put, synthetic media is any content, such as audio, images, or video, created by artificial intelligence. This includes "deepfakes," which are digital forgeries so realistic they can convincingly mimic a person’s voice or likeness (Canadian Digital Regulators Forum, 2025). Deepfakes differ fundamentally from traditional disinformation—they are convincing, scalable, and increasingly accessible. Suspicions of AI generation alone sow doubt.