Bollywood actress Katrina Kaif’s fake images are circulating on social media along with a video featuring actress Rashmika Mandanna, sparking a new discussion about deep fake technology.
According to media reports, Rashmika gained fame with the superhit movie ‘Pushpa’, after which she worked in several major films, but one of her videos has sparked a new debate. The video, posted through deep fake technology, shows a woman resembling Rashmika Mandanna.
Urging for a quick resolution, Rashmika appealed that no one should face a similar situation like hers. She wrote, ‘Truly, anything of this nature is very frightening, not just for me but for all of us.’ She further wrote, ‘The misuse of technology today can cause significant harm not just to me, an actress, but to many others. Today, as someone with a family, friends, and well-wishers, I am grateful for my protectors and my support system, but if something like this had happened when I was in school or college, I couldn’t even fathom how I would have dealt with it.’
Action against the creators of fake videos by the Indian government
The Ministry of Information Technology and Electronics in India has issued an advisory, suggesting three years of imprisonment and a fine of one lakh rupees for individuals creating fake videos using someone’s computer and the internet. Action will also be taken under Section 66 of the IT Act 2000.
How was the vulnerability of the deep fake video identified?
Quoting the viral video, renowned Bollywood actor Amitabh Bachchan stated that legal action should be taken in this matter.
At the same time, Union Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad stated that social media platforms should ensure that incorrect information is not shared on their platforms.
It’s clear that the viral video is a deep fake; this information has been provided by a fact-checker. Additionally, Abhishek associated with the fact-checking website ‘Alt News’ wrote on Twitter that the video was created using deep fake technology and the woman shown in the video is not Rashmika Mandanna.
What is Deep Fake?
You might wonder, what exactly is the term ‘Deep Fake’? It’s a technique that uses artificial intelligence to manipulate videos, images, and audio by swapping faces and voices.
It can change the face of one person in a video using another person’s face. In other words, it creates a video that looks real but isn’t real.
The use of the term ‘Deep Fake’ began in 2017 when a Reddit user used this technique to alter faces in explicit videos, after which Reddit banned ‘Deep Fake Porn.’
How does Deep Fake technology work?
Deep Fake is a very complex technology that requires expertise in machine learning, utilizing two distinct algorithms – a decoder and an encoder.
With this technology, fake content is created first, and then the decoder checks if the content is original or fake. Every time the decoder correctly identifies the content as genuine or fake, it corrects the flaw and sends this information to the encoder to make the next deep fake better.
How can content created using Deep Fake be identified?
It is essential to pay attention to some specific factors. The positioning of faces is crucial because Deep Fake technology often fails in the position of faces and eyes, including the blinking of eyelids.
If you notice that the eyes and nose are misaligned or if there’s been no blinking in the video for a while, then understand that this is fake material. Additionally, by observing the color in the Deep Fake content, you can identify whether the image or video has been tampered with.
Where is Deep Fake used?
According to reports, the genesis of this technology is linked to the creation of explicit content, frequently used in pornography where actors’ faces are replaced on pornographic sites.
The Deep Trace report revealed that 96% of online Deep Fake videos in 2019 contained explicit content. In recent years, this technology has also been used to revive old memories, wherein the faces of deceased relatives in photographs are animated using technology. People have used this technology to bring their ancestors and historical figures to life.
Furthermore, Deep Fakes are now being utilized in politics, with political parties using Deep Fake technology to smear each other during elections. During the Ukraine-Russia conflict, Deep Fake videos also surfaced in the public domain.”
