Deepfake deluge under lens; over 1K videos taken down last yr

Operations largely run from foreign countries with support in India | Cyber wing directs social media platforms to control paid advertisements that stash money

- BIJU E PAUL @Alappuzha

WITH deepfake video scams, involving doctored videos of renowned personalities, mushrooming across social media, hundreds of people in the state have fallen victim to such fraud -- mostly those that offer lucrative investment opportunities.

According to the state cyber crime wing, more than 1,000 such deepfake videos were removed from social media platforms following complaints in the past year.

These videos are created using advanced artificial intelligence (AI) and posted on platforms such as Facebook, Instagram and YouTube. They often feature manipulated footage of public figures and personalities, who appear to promote false investment schemes. People are misled by the realistic visuals and voice clones, and promises of exaggerated returns.