By Neha Yadav
Published Nov 10, 2023

Hindustan Times
In Focus

Photo Credits: Pexels

What is deepfake? 5 things to know

Deepfakes are fake videos and images of people created using artificial intelligence by swapping faces or altering voices. Here are 5 things that you should know about deepfakes.

Face swapping

The deepfake technology swaps the face of a person in a video or an image with another person's face through AI algorithms called encoder and decoder.

Difference between a deepfake and photoshop

The deepfake technology is different than Photoshop as a deepfake is created using advanced deep learning algorithms. AI is used to create fake and convincing visuals of individuals doing or saying something that they never actually did. 

However, results of Photoshopped images are quite distinctive and not as convincing as a deepfake image or a video.

Deepfake algorithm

The deepfake algorithm runs through a process called generative adversarial networks (GANs). Two machine learning models work together to create forgeries and to detect them, resulting in convincing fake videos.

How to spot a deepfake video?

To spot a deepfake video, one must observe the video closely and look for unnatural blinking patterns, facial distortions or mismatched voice and lip movements.

Misuse and manipulation

Deep learning technology is misused to create deepfakes by manipulating content. This AI technology has been misused several times to create deepfakes of politicians and celebrities.