In Oprah Winfrey’s AI special AI and the Future of Us, aired on September 10, 2024, the dangers of AI-generated deepfakes and disinformation were front and centre.
FBI Director Christopher Wray joined the conversation, raising alarms about the growing use of AI to manipulate public perception and exploit vulnerable individuals.
During the show, tech influencer Marques Brownlee demonstrated the power of deepfakes, comparing footage from OpenAI’s new video generator, Sora, to older AI-generated content.
The comparison revealed significant advancements, with Oprah herself admitting, “It looked real to me.” Brownlee remarked, “Now, you can still kind of look at pieces of this and tell something’s not quite right.”
This rapid progress in deepfake technology is both impressive and alarming.
Wray recounted how AI’s ability to create realistic but fake media poses serious risks.
He explained that during a demonstration by his team, a deepfake video of him was created, depicting him saying things he had never said.
“I was in a conference room, and a bunch of [FBI] folks got together to show me how AI-enhanced deepfakes can be created. And they had created a video of me saying things I had never said before and would never say.”
In late 2023, SABC news presenter Leanne Manas became the target of deepfakes, appearing in fake news stories and ads promoting products and get-rich-quick schemes.
Deepfakes, created using AI tools to alter images, video, and audio, don’t require advanced skills; software like FaceSwap and ZaoApp makes them accessible to the public.
Initially used in entertainment, such as when a French actress couldn't film her soap opera scenes due to COVID-19 restrictions, deepfakes have now expanded to misuse in fraudulent schemes.
The FBI director expressed particular concern over AI’s role in sextortion, a crime that has seen a 178% increase in cases between 2022 and 2023, according to cybersecurity firm ESET.
Wray explained that in many cases, criminals use AI-generated compromising pictures to manipulate teenagers into sharing real, intimate photos.
"In fact, it’s some guy behind a keyboard in Nigeria, and once they have the images, they threaten to blackmail the kid," he said.
Wray also highlighted AI’s role in political disinformation, especially with the upcoming U.S. presidential election. While asserting that it “wasn’t time for panic,” he warned that AI could easily be weaponised to manipulate public discourse.
“We’re finding all too often that something on social media that looks like Bill from Topeka or Mary from Dayton is actually, you know, some Russian or Chinese intelligence officer on the outskirts of Beijing or Moscow,” Wray said.
IOL