The mainstream media is in serious trouble. Trust was low before the election, and now even fewer people believe them
🚨 Deepfakes going to a new level: TikTok owner ByteDance built an AI tool that makes realistic videos of people talking and singing from a single photo. OmniHuman can take an image (half-body or full-body) and bring it to life. Check out this example of Albert Einstein. Snazzy but scary in the wrong hands. And let’s not forget this is Chinese-owned. I wouldn’t hand over any personal pics.
2 in 2,000
People could spot every deepfake image and video of faces. About 39% of people over 65 hadn’t even heard of deepfakes, and 60% of younger people (18-34) were way too confident they could spot fakes. Take the quiz yourself.
Deepfake scams: Billionaire Warren Buffett wants everyone to know he’s not endorsing any investment products or political candidates. Remember, whenever a celebrity or high-profile figure promotes something, always check their official social media accounts to confirm it’s legit.
🚨 AI voice scams spreading: An elderly father was duped out of $25,000 after scammers called him using an AI-generated voice of his son. The caller, his “son,” claimed he’d hit a pregnant woman while driving and needed bail money ASAP. The father withdrew the cash, an Uber picked it up, and the con artists disappeared. Reminder: Scammers thrive on fear and urgency, so always verify phone numbers and set up a family safe word for emergencies.
🚨 Celebrity shakedown: Taylor Swift, Johnny Depp and Kylie Jenner are among the top 10 celebs fraudsters deepfake to push phony giveaways, endorsements and crypto investments. Their scams are getting harder to spot, as the deepfaked versions look and sound a lot like the real stars. Always check a celebrity’s official social pages before you buy anything they’re pitching.
Clone your voice in 15 minutes
A new iPhone feature can make a copy of your voice. Could scammers use it for deepfakes? A German company will freeze your body for over $200,000, hoping to bring you back to life later. Plus, Taco Bell brings AI to the drive-thru, and be wary of fake Facebook stores.
🛡️ A win against deepfakes: The U.S. Senate unanimously passed the first bill to crack down on AI porn. The bill will let victims sue anyone who creates or distributes explicit content depicting the victims without their consent, with a 10-year statute of limitations. You know more regulations are coming.
👊 Fighting deepfakes: Teen girls like Elliston Berry are sharing their horror stories with AI nudes that left them feeling “shameful.” Now, lawmakers are doing something about it. A new bill would criminalize nonconsensual deepfakes (paywall link) and make platforms and websites take down pictures within 48 hours of notice from the victim. Finally!
Deepfakes and Joe Biden's White House
The White House Press Secretary, Karine Jean-Pierre, claims viral videos of President Biden looking frail or confused are deepfakes. But are they really? Here’s the story.
🚨 Russian propaganda: The Kremlin is using deepfakes, fake news sites and social media attacks to undermine the upcoming U.S. elections. “D.C. Weekly,” “Boston Times” and “Election Watch” are just some of the names of their fake outlets. Stick to trusted news sources. It’s going to get a lot worse in the coming months.
Scammers use your videos for deepfakes
Plus, an interview with a a guy who lost big money to fake investments — and he’s smart, folks! It could happen to anyone.
May 4th, 2024
Teen girls face a new threat at school: deepfakes. Want a new car? Before you buy an EV, know the big battery costs. Plus, hackers fight for your old router, AM radio faces extinction, and Dropbox data breach.
Rappin’ Lisa: Microsoft’s new AI tool, VASA-1, animates still images into videos loaded with facial expressions, head motions and lip movements that match a speech or song. Here’s a video showing the Mona Lisa rapping. Microsoft is delaying the release of this tool, though, because it makes creating deepfakes too easy.
Phony Fabios: Think you’re being catfished? You used to be able to out them with a video call. Not anymore. Romance scammers are using video deepfakes to change their appearances in real time. They record themselves on a phone or webcam and use a face-swapping app to pose as another online cutie and charm victims — aka ask for money.
Deepfake p*rn survivor fights back
In 2020, Breeze Liu found a nude video of herself — recorded without her knowledge — on P*rnhub. That video then spiraled into hundreds of deepfakes created of her. Seeking help to take them down, she found little to none. Now, she’s taking matters into her own hands.
Scammers can use YOUR videos for deepfakes
Plus, an interview with a guy who lost big money to fake investments — and he’s smart, folks. It can happen to anyone!
Deepfakes using your kid's voice
Got one of those frightening calls? Don’t panic. Check out these tips on how to avoid falling for it.
This fear keeps Sam Altman up at night
Plus, your AI girlfriend collects a lot of data. Kim and Andrew also talk the White House’s plan to tackle deepfakes, and take a look back at the first kiss ever recorded.
😏 Dig deep: The White House says a new plan to “cryptographically verify” videos of President Biden is “in the works.” That’s right — the WH is working on ways to prevent AI-generated deepfakes from spreading. Really? Now? I suggested this a full 18 months ago.