The idea of deepfakes is nothing new. We have seen this concept used for a long time, to varying degrees. One negative outcome of our most recent technological advancement is the ability to generate deepfakes faster and with greater realism than ever before.
Artificial intelligence is providing these tools to anyone. As costs come down, the technology improves, offering even "free" users the ability to generate this type of information. Considering the basis of generative AI, this is exactly what it is designed to do.
This technology takes in data, is trained on it, and spits out new information. It is not simply a mirror, reflecting back what was entered.
Here is where it is ideal for deepfakes. With improvement regarding images and video, the potential of taking well known figures and generating a fake video is growing. This could have an impact upon careers, elections, and businesses.
In fact, it is likely that many within governments are using this technology. Do not think this is only relegated to rogue individuals.
So what can we do to stop this? The answer is multi-faceted so we will look at it closer.
Blockchain To Combat Deepfakes
Blockchain got a lot of attention with the introduction of Bitcoin.
This innovation allows for the consensus of financial transactions without a centralized third party. It was a revolutionary move since, up to that point, all attempts at electronic cash required a centralized entity.
Over the last decade, we saw this expand into many areas. The potential for blockchain only keeps growing.
That said, financial transactions are not the only thing that can be verified in such a manner. Blockchain, within the financial arena, carries great weight since it has the ability to provide trust. Counterparty risk is moved to the network itself, eliminating gatekeepers or financial intermediaries.
All transactions are transparent. The flow of funds can be traced throughout the entire history of the chain. One can travel all the way to the genesis block if needed.
Taking On Deepfakes
As stated, this is a multi-faceted solution. Eventually, AI is likely to be utilized to combat this.
To achieve this, information is required. Here is where blockchain enters. Due to the cryptographic nature of the network, through the use of individual hash, a transparent record can be established pertaining to an image or video. This mean, if there was an alternation, that would be noted.
When something is placed on a blockchain, it has a unique identifier, including time stamps. This cannot be modified since these networks also have immutability.
Thus, it is rather easy to see if an image was altered.
We also have the ability to track all the activity of an account (wallet). With key based management systems, the idea of hacking a social media account is removed. This means we have a degree of trust in what is posted.
Account reputation is easy to figure out, at least in a general sense.
If we see a lot of videos from an account that are not coinciding with the hash, then we know this is one that is spreading fakes. Contrast this with a major media network, where the content is not only original but fully hashed on the blockchain.
Is this the silver bullet? No, there is no simple answer to this problem.
What is important is to understand how it is a part of the solution.
Digital Identity Systems
This is likely to be a problem for the foreseeable future. One of the keys, going forward, which could aid in this battle is the emergence of true digital identities. This is a debated subject and far from the scope of this article.
However, one of the keys to preventing nefarious activity is tracing back to who is doing it.
The online world obviously had problems. We are 3 decades into mainstream use of the Internet, and hacking is still a problem. Authorities have no idea where things are centered while also having no solution. A few are caught but the majority get away with things.
As the digital world expands, this is taking on greater importance.
So far, little was done to solve the problem if a reliable digital identity system. Centralized entities are taking measures but that opens up another can of worms. This created the counterparty risk. Also, it is common for them to get hacked also.
Blockchain can also be a part of the solution for digital identities. Up to this point, we are having an issue tying a digital identity with a real person. There are many reasons for anonymity, especially with the way governments and large corporations are behaving.
This quickly evolves into a complex question with many variables to consider.
For now, we have deepfakes coming out in large numbers. Fortunately, most of them are of low quality and easily recognized. That will not be the case in a couple years.
Hopefully we can start to build the systems that help to combat this.