Deepfake AI videos catch India PM’s attention as he urges public awareness

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India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi has expressed concern over the rise of artificial intelligence (AI) deepfakes in the country’s social media space, sparking fears of misinformation and fraud.

According to a Times of India report, Modi stated that while generative AI can improve productivity, bad actors have begun exploiting the technology for sinister use cases. Top of the list of concerns for Modi is the use of deepfakes with the potential to misrepresent facts and lure victims into making fraudulent investments.

The prime minister noted the increasing realism of deepfakes and the difficulty distinguishing between AI-generated content and reality, citing a deepfake video of himself singing local songs.

“There is a challenge arising because of artificial intelligence and deepfake,” said Modi. “A big section of our country has no parallel option for verification. People often end up believing in deepfakes and this will go in the direction of a big challenge.”

In recent months, deepfake videos of Indian actors have flooded the internet, with Rashmika Mandanna and Katrina Kaif bearing the brunt of the creations. Using synthetic videos, bad actors portray the actors in lewd scenes or use them to solicit investments from the public.

Since the start of the year, hundreds of Indian residents have lost thousands of dollars to digital currency scams using Elon Musk’s likenesses.

To stem the misuse of deepfakes in India, Modi calls for increased public sensitization for residents to educate them on identifying and curbing the spread of AI-generated deepfakes. The country has since launched an AI course by the Ministry of Education and Skill Development and Entrepreneurship with banking officials upskilling to clamp down on deepfake-powered fraud.

“Additionally, they will need to prioritize risk management, regulatory compliance, and sustainability to ensure long-term resilience and competitiveness in the evolving banking landscape,” said one regulator.

The country has made small regulatory progress with AI regulation, imposing steep fines and up to three years of jail for creating deepfakes that attempt to mislead the public.

Delhi police have announced the launch of investigations over the deepfake videos of Mandanna and Kaif, with authorities reportedly requesting URLs from Meta (NASDAQ: META).

AI and blockchain for India

Although blockchain has a head start, use cases for AI are quickly closing the gap, with experts eyeing several use cases for the technology in the Indian economy.

Top of the list is finance, with commercial banks urged to pivot to AI to crack down on anti-money laundering (AML) violations in real-time. On the other hand, the Reserve Bank of India is pushing for AI-powered conversational instant payments via its United Payments Interface (UPI).

“This AI-driven model ensures swift and secure transactions, safeguarding users within a consolidated environment,” said one finance executive. “This will further enhance the user experience, offering a seamless, transparent, and highly convenient payment solution.”

In order for artificial intelligence (AI) to work right within the law and thrive in the face of growing challenges, it needs to integrate an enterprise blockchain system that ensures data input quality and ownership—allowing it to keep data safe while also guaranteeing the immutability of data. Check out CoinGeek’s coverage on this emerging tech to learn more why Enterprise blockchain will be the backbone of AI.

Watch: Bangalore and blockchain—the synergy is there