Not long ago, I was browsing Facebook and I realized that we're heading toward a future in which AI-generated content would be indistinguishable from factual content. I stumbled upon a post about a mother of four who was having a hard time in life, and claimed she found a huge amount of cash in the trunk of a second-hand car. The photo looked real at first glance; the description was emotional and held proper attention to detail. But, upon a closer look into the "photograph" revealed that this was an AI-generated image, and the description was just as fictional.
The photo looked real at first glance; the description was emotional and held proper attention to detail
What intrigued me was how realistic it appeared. The line separating fake from real was minimal, the hands of the children had subtle defects which is a usual shortcoming in AI-generated pictures; but I started wondering how long until we won't be able to tell fact from fiction.
These fake images have improved a lot in recent times due to advances in machine learning with models such as DALL-E, Flux, and Stable Diffusion. Such models can generate images from textual descriptions or other inputs; often, the images are not distinguishable from actual photographs. The specific post on Facebook that I came across was the perfect example of how this tech used for entertainment, will also be used to mislead people. That an unknowing observer could be misled speaks to the immense power of this and its potential abuse.
The post on Facebook that I came across was the perfect example of how this tech used for entertainment, will also be used to mislead people
That crisis is not some scene from a far-off future; it is here. Detection tools can still catch a big percentage of AI-created media, but those tools are not perfect. And it will get worse with the evolution of AI happening much quicker than our detection tools.
The most immediate consequence is the shatter of trust. In a world where users can make realistic fake images or videos in seconds, people will begin to doubt whether what we see online is true. Trust is what grounds our digital presence; take that from us, and we could just live in a state of constant doubt.
In a world where users can make realistic fake images or videos in seconds, people will begin to doubt whether what we see online is true
Events can be framed through counterfeited news, images, and deepfake videos. Such framing could mislead the public through false narratives or, even worse, influencing outcomes regarding political events. Just think of a scenario where a fake video showing false remarks from one world leader against another goes viral before we can prove it was fabricated. The potential for chaos is extreme.
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Other uses of AI-generated images could be for more personalized attacks. AI could be used in revenge porn, and social engineering attacks. The damage to an individual could be immense, from simple digital pranks to real-world consequences.
How Do We Prepare For This Future?
Where AI-generated content can no longer be differentiated from real events, the immediate need is to find some sort of solution to its potential dangers. We cannot stop AI development, but we can take action on regulating it. One solution for this could be in embedding digital watermarks in images and videos generated with the use of AI.
This means that governments will need to make laws and ethics guidelines for the use of AI-generated content. In such regulations, creating and distributing some forms of deepfakes would be illegal or at least come with financial penalties for those individuals and organizations participating in deception practices.
What happened with the AI-generated image of a mother and her children is not an isolated incident but a glimpse of times to come when the means to differentiate between what is real and what is not will be stretched to the limit. In this fast-approaching world, all of us are going to have to be detectives while browsing through the internet.
Could this be the end of an era? Could the fact that nothing will be considered real until proven otherwise, perhaps shift people's attention span from the endless scrolling of fake events, to the experience of our magnificent and 100% real world that we live in?
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