Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday spoke about the alarming issue of using artificial intelligence to create ‘deep fake’ content. He said that such content can mislead and manipulate the public, and asked the media to play a role in educating people about this danger. The Prime Minister’s comments come at a time when deepfakes are becoming increasingly common and sophisticated, raising concerns about their potential impact on society. Popular actors such as Rashmika Mandanna, Katrina Kaif, and Kajol are some of its recent victims.
‘Deep fake’ is a term used to describe videos or images that are altered using AI to make someone appear or say something they never did. Such content can be used for malicious purposes, such as spreading false information, defaming someone, or influencing elections.
PM Modi appealed to the media fraternity to inform the public about the dangers of using artificial intelligence to create and spread harmful content such as deepfakes that can distort the reality of individuals. PM Modi also emphasised the need for awareness and vigilance to deal with the challenges posed by the changing technology.
“There is a challenge arising because of Artificial Intelligence and deepfake … a big section of our country has no parallel option for verification … people often end up believing in deepfakes and this will go into a direction of a big challenge,” he said.
“I recently saw a video in which I was seen singing Garba songs. Even I marvelled at how good the video was. There are many other such videos online,” said PM Modi, adding that the threat of deepfake is very serious and can cause a lot of trouble for all of us.
Deepfakes are created and circulated with the intention of spreading false or harmful information. They can be used to harass, intimidate, humiliate and discredit people. Deepfakes can also cause misinformation and confusion about important matters. The Centre has announced that making and sharing deepfakes will attract severe penalties – a fine of Rs 1 lakh and a jail term of three years.
