Sam Gregory, who works on deepfakes policy at the nonprofit Witness, says.
Zelensky’s high profile helped Ukraine’s poignant warning two weeks ago win international news, and it also helped that Wednesday’s quick response go viral. His prominence may also have prompted quick responses to videos from social media companies. Meta spokesman Aaron Simpson declined to say how it discovered the video; So does YouTube’s Choi. The statement provided by Twitter’s Kennedy noted the unspecified “external investigative report.”
Not all people targeted by deepfakes are able to react as quickly as Zelensky — or find their disapproval widely believed. “Ukraine is well positioned to do this,” says Gregory. “This is very different from other cases where even a poor deepfake can create uncertainty about authenticity.”
Gregory pointed to a video that surfaced in Myanmar last year, which appeared to show a detained former government minister saying he provided cash and gold to the country’s former leader Aung San Suu Kyi.
The military junta that replaced Aung San Suu Kyi in a coup used the footage to accuse her of corruption. But in the video, the face and voice of the former minister were distorted, leading many journalists and people to believe that the clip was fake.
Technical analysis has yet to solve the mystery, partly because the video is of low quality, and because the former minister and others who understand the truth do not speak freely or to a large audience like Zelensky has. possible on Wednesday. While automated deepfake detection devices may one day help fight the bad guys, they Still a work in progress.
Deepfakes are often still used more to incite or harass than to deceive, especially when they become Easier to create. A deep heart about Russian President Putin circulating on Twitter also this week, even though it was identified as unauthentic from the start. However, the Zelensky deepfake and its accompanying hacks could represent a troubling new frontier. The quick and successful response to the clip shows how, with a few tweaks and better timing, a deepfake attack can become an effective political weapon.
Samuel Bendett, who tracks Russian defense technology at the non-profit CNA, said: “If this is a more professional video and was released early in a more successful Russian move on Kyiv, then it is. can create a lot of confusion. As deepfake technology continues to advance Easier to access and More convincesZelensky is unlikely to be the last political leader targeted by the fake video.
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