UN Report Calls for Stronger Measures to Combat AI-Driven Deepfakes

UN Report Highlights Deepfake Threats and Calls for Action

The United Nations' International Telecommunication Union (ITU) has released a report urging companies to implement stronger measures to detect and combat AI-driven deepfakes. The report, unveiled at the "AI for Good Summit" in Geneva, emphasizes the growing risks posed by deepfakes, including election interference and financial fraud 1

Understanding Deepfakes and Their Implications

Deepfakes, which include AI-generated images, videos, and audio that convincingly impersonate real people, are becoming increasingly sophisticated. The ITU report highlights the mounting risks associated with these manipulated multimedia content, particularly in the context of social media and online information consumption 1

Bilel Jamoussi, Chief of the Study Groups Department at the ITU's Standardization Bureau, noted, "Trust in social media has dropped significantly because people don't know what's true and what's fake." He identified combating deepfakes as a top challenge, citing Generative AI's ability to fabricate realistic multimedia 1

Proposed Solutions and Industry Perspectives

The ITU report calls for robust standards to combat manipulated multimedia and recommends that content distributors, such as social media platforms, utilize digital verification tools to authenticate images and videos before sharing 1

Leonard Rosenthol of Adobe, a company that has been addressing deepfakes since 2019, emphasized the importance of establishing the provenance of digital content. He stated, "We need more of the places where users consume their content to show this information...When you are scrolling through your feeds you want to know: 'can I trust this image, this video...'" 1

Global Approach and Standardization Efforts

Dr. Farzaneh Badiei, founder of digital governance research firm Digital Medusa, stressed the need for a global approach to the problem. She pointed out that there is currently no single international watchdog focusing on detecting manipulated material, warning that "If we have patchworks of standards and solutions, then the harmful deepfake can be more effective" 1

The ITU is currently developing standards for watermarking videos, which make up 80% of internet traffic. These standards aim to embed provenance data such as creator identity and timestamps, providing a means to verify the authenticity of digital content 1

Private Sector Involvement and User Education

Tomaz Levak, founder of Switzerland-based Umanitek, urged the private sector to proactively implement safety measures and educate users. He emphasized the need for continuous adaptation, stating, "AI will only get more powerful, faster or smarter... We'll need to upskill people to make sure that they are not victims of the systems" 1

Source: Reuters

As AI technology continues to advance, the report underscores the importance of developing comprehensive strategies to detect, combat, and mitigate the risks associated with deepfakes. This multifaceted approach involves technological solutions, global cooperation, and user education to maintain trust in digital content and protect against potential misuse of AI-generated media.