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“Deepfake” videos, made possible by the advance of Artificial Intelligence (AI), now pose a threat to privacy, human rights, security and dignity.

Simply put, deepfakes are AI-powered videos in which the creator makes the person in the video say or do things that the person in the original video did not.

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Imagine that someone who wants to disrupt an election creates a video about a candidate showing them using derogatory language about women and sexual minorities. Although the content is inaccurate, viewers cannot tell what is real and what is not, and such videos can have an immediate effect on voters as they shape public narratives.

The troubling fact is that creating deepfakes is relatively easy. There are apps that can be used by virtually anyone. Although experts are trying to find ways to counter deepfakes, people are finding ways to circumvent those barriers.

Recently, the Samsung AI Lab came up with a new and easier wayto create deepfake videos using as little as one original photo. Although this new technology is not yet in the wrong hands, so far as is known, it is possible that people with unethical motives will eventually be able to mimic this new technology.