#FactCheck - Viral image circulating on social media depicts a natural optical illusion from Epirus, Greece.

Introduction

The advent of AI-driven deepfake technology has facilitated the creation of explicit counterfeit videos for sextortion purposes. There has been an alarming increase in the use of Artificial Intelligence to create fake explicit images or videos for sextortion.

What is AI Sextortion and Deepfake Technology

AI sextortion refers to the use of artificial intelligence (AI) technology, particularly deepfake algorithms, to create counterfeit explicit videos or images for the purpose of harassing, extorting, or blackmailing individuals. Deepfake technology utilises AI algorithms to manipulate or replace faces and bodies in videos, making them appear realistic and often indistinguishable from genuine footage. This enables malicious actors to create explicit content that falsely portrays individuals engaging in sexual activities, even if they never participated in such actions.

Background on the Alarming Increase in AI Sextortion Cases

Recently there has been a significant increase in AI sextortion cases. Advancements in AI and deepfake technology have made it easier for perpetrators to create highly convincing fake explicit videos or images. The algorithms behind these technologies have become more sophisticated, allowing for more seamless and realistic manipulations. And the accessibility of AI tools and resources has increased, with open-source software and cloud-based services readily available to anyone. This accessibility has lowered the barrier to entry, enabling individuals with malicious intent to exploit these technologies for sextortion purposes.

The proliferation of sharing content on social media

The proliferation of social media platforms and the widespread sharing of personal content online have provided perpetrators with a vast pool of potential victims’ images and videos. By utilising these readily available resources, perpetrators can create deepfake explicit content that closely resembles the victims, increasing the likelihood of success in their extortion schemes.

Furthermore, the anonymity and wide reach of the internet and social media platforms allow perpetrators to distribute manipulated content quickly and easily. They can target individuals specifically or upload the content to public forums and pornographic websites, amplifying the impact and humiliation experienced by victims.

What are law agencies doing?

The alarming increase in AI sextortion cases has prompted concern among law enforcement agencies, advocacy groups, and technology companies. This is high time to make strong Efforts to raise awareness about the risks of AI sextortion, develop detection and prevention tools, and strengthen legal frameworks to address these emerging threats to individuals’ privacy, safety, and well-being.

There is a need for Technological Solutions, which develops and deploys advanced AI-based detection tools to identify and flag AI-generated deepfake content on platforms and services. And collaboration with technology companies to integrate such solutions.

Collaboration with Social Media Platforms is also needed. Social media platforms and technology companies can reframe and enforce community guidelines and policies against disseminating AI-generated explicit content. And can ensure foster cooperation in developing robust content moderation systems and reporting mechanisms.

There is a need to strengthen the legal frameworks to address AI sextortion, including laws that specifically criminalise the creation, distribution, and possession of AI-generated explicit content. Ensure adequate penalties for offenders and provisions for cross-border cooperation.

Proactive measures to combat AI-driven sextortion

Prevention and Awareness: Proactive measures raise awareness about AI sextortion, helping individuals recognise risks and take precautions.

Early Detection and Reporting: Proactive measures employ advanced detection tools to identify AI-generated deepfake content early, enabling prompt intervention and support for victims.

Legal Frameworks and Regulations: Proactive measures strengthen legal frameworks to criminalise AI sextortion, facilitate cross-border cooperation, and impose offender penalties.

Technological Solutions: Proactive measures focus on developing tools and algorithms to detect and remove AI-generated explicit content, making it harder for perpetrators to carry out their schemes.

International Cooperation: Proactive measures foster collaboration among law enforcement agencies, governments, and technology companies to combat AI sextortion globally.

Support for Victims: Proactive measures provide comprehensive support services, including counselling and legal assistance, to help victims recover from emotional and psychological trauma.

Implementing these proactive measures will help create a safer digital environment for all.

Misuse of Technology

Misusing technology, particularly AI-driven deepfake technology, in the context of sextortion raises serious concerns.

Exploitation of Personal Data: Perpetrators exploit personal data and images available online, such as social media posts or captured video chats, to create AI- manipulation violates privacy rights and exploits the vulnerability of individuals who trust that their personal information will be used responsibly.

Facilitation of Extortion: AI sextortion often involves perpetrators demanding monetary payments, sexually themed images or videos, or other favours under the threat of releasing manipulated content to the public or to the victims’ friends and family. The realistic nature of deepfake technology increases the effectiveness of these extortion attempts, placing victims under significant emotional and financial pressure.

Amplification of Harm: Perpetrators use deepfake technology to create explicit videos or images that appear realistic, thereby increasing the potential for humiliation, harassment, and psychological trauma suffered by victims. The wide distribution of such content on social media platforms and pornographic websites can perpetuate victimisation and cause lasting damage to their reputation and well-being.

Targeting teenagers– Targeting teenagers and extortion demands in AI sextortion cases is a particularly alarming aspect of this issue. Teenagers are particularly vulnerable to AI sextortion due to their increased use of social media platforms for sharing personal information and images. Perpetrators exploit to manipulate and coerce them.

Erosion of Trust: Misusing AI-driven deepfake technology erodes trust in digital media and online interactions. As deepfake content becomes more convincing, it becomes increasingly challenging to distinguish between real and manipulated videos or images.

Proliferation of Pornographic Content: The misuse of AI technology in sextortion contributes to the proliferation of non-consensual pornography (also known as “revenge porn”) and the availability of explicit content featuring unsuspecting individuals. This perpetuates a culture of objectification, exploitation, and non-consensual sharing of intimate material.

Conclusion

Addressing the concern of AI sextortion requires a multi-faceted approach, including technological advancements in detection and prevention, legal frameworks to hold offenders accountable, awareness about the risks, and collaboration between technology companies, law enforcement agencies, and advocacy groups to combat this emerging threat and protect the well-being of individuals online.

Introduction

Deepfakes are artificial intelligence (AI) technology that employs deep learning to generate realistic-looking but phoney films or images. Algorithms use large volumes of data to analyse and discover patterns in order to provide compelling and realistic results. Deepfakes use this technology to modify movies or photos to make them appear as if they involve events or persons that never happened or existed.The procedure begins with gathering large volumes of visual and auditory data about the target individual, which is usually obtained from publicly accessible sources such as social media or public appearances. This data is then utilised for training a deep-learning model to resemble the target of deep fakes.

Recent Cases of Deepfakes-‍

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In an unusual turn of events, a man from northern China became the victim of a sophisticated deep fake technology. This incident has heightened concerns about using artificial intelligence (AI) tools to aid financial crimes, putting authorities and the general public on high alert.
During a video conversation, a scammer successfully impersonated the victim’s close friend using AI-powered face-swapping technology. The scammer duped the unwary victim into transferring 4.3 million yuan (nearly Rs 5 crore). The fraud occurred in Baotou, China.

AI ‘deep fakes’ of innocent images fuel spike in sextortion scams
Artificial intelligence-generated “deepfakes” are fuelling sextortion frauds like a dry brush in a raging wildfire. According to the FBI, the number of nationally reported sextortion instances came to 322% between February 2022 and February 2023, with a notable spike since April due to AI-doctored photographs. And as per the FBI, innocent photographs or videos posted on social media or sent in communications can be distorted into sexually explicit, AI-generated visuals that are “true-to-life” and practically hard to distinguish. According to the FBI, predators often located in other countries use doctored AI photographs against juveniles to compel money from them or their families or to obtain actual sexually graphic images.

Deepfake Applications

• Lensa AI.
• Deepfakes Web.
• Reface.
• MyHeritage.
• DeepFaceLab.
• Deep Art.
• Face Swap Live.
• FaceApp.

Deepfake examples

There are numerous high-profile Deepfake examples available. Deepfake films include one released by actor Jordan Peele, who used actual footage of Barack Obama and his own imitation of Obama to convey a warning about Deepfake videos.
A video shows Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg discussing how Facebook ‘controls the future’ with stolen user data, most notably on Instagram. The original video is from a speech he delivered on Russian election meddling; only 21 seconds of that address were used to create the new version. However, the vocal impersonation fell short of Jordan Peele’s Obama and revealed the truth.

The dark side of AI-Generated Misinformation

• Misinformation generated by AI-generated the truth, making it difficult to distinguish fact from fiction.
• People can unmask AI content by looking for discrepancies and lacking the human touch.
• AI content detection technologies can detect and neutralise disinformation, preventing it from spreading.

Safeguards against Deepfakes-

Technology is not the only way to guard against Deepfake videos. Good fundamental security methods are incredibly effective for combating Deepfake.For example, incorporating automatic checks into any mechanism for disbursing payments might have prevented numerous Deepfake and related frauds. You might also:

• Regular backups safeguard your data from ransomware and allow you to restore damaged data.
• Using different, strong passwords for different accounts ensures that just because one network or service has been compromised, it does not imply that others have been compromised as well. You do not want someone to be able to access your other accounts if they get into your Facebook account.
• To secure your home network, laptop, and smartphone against cyber dangers, use a good security package such as Kaspersky Total Security. This bundle includes anti-virus software, a VPN to prevent compromised Wi-Fi connections, and webcam security.

What is the future of Deepfake –

Deepfake is constantly growing. Deepfake films were easy to spot two years ago because of the clumsy movement and the fact that the simulated figure never looked to blink. However, the most recent generation of bogus videos has evolved and adapted.
There are currently approximately 15,000 Deepfake videos available online. Some are just for fun, while others attempt to sway your opinion. But now that it only takes a day or two to make a new Deepfake, that number could rise rapidly.

Conclusion-

The distinction between authentic and fake content will undoubtedly become more challenging to identify as technology advances. As a result, experts feel it should not be up to individuals to discover deep fakes in the wild. “The responsibility should be on the developers, toolmakers, and tech companies to create invisible watermarks and signal what the source of that image is,” they stated. Several startups are also working on approaches for detecting deep fakes.

Executive Summary:

A viral post on social media shared with misleading captions about a National Highway being built with large bridges over a mountainside in Jammu and Kashmir. However, the investigation of the claim shows that the bridge is from  China. Thus the video is false and misleading.

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  Claim:

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A video circulating of National Highway 14 construction being built on the mountain side in Jammu and Kashmir.  

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Fact Check:

Upon receiving the image, Reverse Image Search was carried out, an image of an under-construction road,  falsely linked to Jammu and Kashmir has been proven inaccurate. After investigating we confirmed the road is from a different location that is G6911 Ankang-Laifeng Expressway in China, highlighting the need to verify information before sharing.

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Conclusion:

The viral claim mentioning under-construction Highway from Jammu and Kashmir is false. The post is actually from China and not J&K. Misinformation like this can mislead the public. Before sharing viral posts, take a brief moment to verify the facts. This highlights the importance of verifying information and relying on credible sources to combat the spread of false claims.

• Claim:  Under-Construction Road Falsely Linked to Jammu and Kashmir
• Claimed On: Instagram and X (Formerly Known As Twitter)
• Fact Check: False and Misleading 

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