Explained: Why deepfakes are everywhere, and the fight to stop them

Published : Feb 12, 2024 12:24 IST - 5 MINS READ The world is awash in deepfakes—video, audio, or pictures in which people appear to do or say things they did not or be somewhere they were not. New Hampshire residents received a robocall before the State’s presidential primary that sounded like Biden urging them to stay home and “save your vote for the November election”. The voice even uttered one of Biden’s signature phrases: “What a bunch of malarkey.” There is currently no US federal law banning deepfakes. However, Motherboard, a Vice publication, reported in 2017 that a Reddit user called “deepfakes” had devised an algorithm for making fake videos using open-source code. Intel Corp. launched a FakeCatcher product in November 2022, which it says can detect faked video with 96 per cent accuracy by observing the subtle colour changes on the subject’s skin caused by blood flow.