IANS | 25 Apr, 2024
Nearly one in four Indians (22 per cent) have said they recently came
across political content they later discovered to be deepfake, a new
report revealed on Thursday.
According to the cyber security
company McAfee, about 75 per cent of Indians have encountered deepfake
content, with most concerned about the potential use of Artificial
Intelligence (AI)-powered deepfakes for (44 per cent) impersonating
public figures, (37 per cent) undermining public trust in media and (31
per cent) influencing elections.
"Recently, India has been witness
to an unprecedented surge in cases of deepfake content involving public
and private figures. The ease with which AI can manipulate voices and
visuals raises critical questions about the authenticity of content,
particularly during a critical election year," said Pratim Mukherjee,
senior director of engineering, McAfee.
The report surveyed 7,000
consumers globally across the US, UK, France, Germany, Australia, India,
and Japan in January and February of this year.
Under the
potential uses of deepfakes which are concerning, the report found
cyberbullying (55 per cent), creating fake pornographic content (52 per
cent), facilitating scams (49 per cent), and distorting historical facts
(27 per cent).
About 64 per cent said that AI has made it harder for them to spot online scams.
Around
57 per cent came across a video, image, or recording of a celebrity and
thought it was real, with 31 per cent losing money to a scam.
“It’s
imperative that consumers be cautious and take proactive steps to stay
informed and safeguard themselves against misinformation, disinformation
and deepfake scams," said Mukherjee.