Deepfake
Video, images or audio created or altered with AI to make it look or sound like a real person did or said something they didn’t.
In one line
A deepfake is fake media made with AI that is realistic enough to pass as real.
How they are used against people
- Voice-clone scams. A short clip of someone’s voice can be enough to copy it, then call a relative asking for urgent money. See can you get your money back after a voice cloning scam.
- Fake endorsements. Public figures appear to promote investments or products.
- Harassment. Non-consensual intimate images.
How to protect yourself
Agree a family safe word, call people back on a number you already have, and slow down when a message is urgent and secret. Our Scam Message Checker flags the usual warning signs.
The law
The EU AI Act requires deepfakes to be disclosed as AI-generated, and California’s AI Transparency Act requires large AI providers to offer detection tools and embed disclosures.
In the news
Sources
- Science & Tech Spotlight: Deepfakes, US Government Accountability Office
- Regulation (EU) 2024/1689 (Artificial Intelligence Act), EUR-Lex
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