Deepfake is a technique that takes a person in an existing image or video and replaces them with someone else’s likeness using artificial neural networks. It often combines and superimposes existing media onto source media using “machine learning” techniques known as “autoencoders” and “generative adversarial networks”.
If you have never seen or heard of it look up some videos on YouTube, you’ll get a good idea of what it is and maybe have a laugh if you see Bill Hader.
Now to my point… Since we already are dealing with “fakenews”, biased news reports, how will the deepfake technology impact an already fragile state of “facts” in the world?
Bias is human and even those of us that try to be objective can be fooled.
When an article pulls on our personal biases and gives us some actual facts it’s easy for us to determine that whatever followes probably is true too…and they gotcha!
How will we be able to combat such a difficult to recognise technology? It will only get better in time.
People that are in the public eye could become victims of misrepresention and even worse. It could be used by ruthless people to undermine the character of others.
It’s easy(somewhat) to debunk a public speaking but what about those “behind the scenes” videos?
Should there be legislation on the matter?
Do people in the public eye have the expectation of owning their “looks”?
I think there’s a lot to be said about it and maybe I haven’t even thought of all the repercussions to this amazing technology, because it is amazing…but wow can it be detrimental in the wrong hands!
