A Personal anecdote
Last year, my friend and roommate Robert had his bank account details stolen. Before he could stop the theft, he lost hundreds of dollars, a lot of money for a college student. For him, it also sparked anxiety about potential identity theft.
Luckily, the result of the theft stopped there, and his identity was not stolen. Additionally, he was able to regain the money that was stolen from him by contacting his bank. The process took about a month, but he still felt lucky because there was a chance he wouldn't get any of the money back
This outcome showed one of the best case-scenarios, because only one financial aspect was taken, and he got the money back in a relatively short amount of time. Still, it was a scary situation to have happen, and shows how even the small breach in privacy can have a big effect.
An online anecdote from cnn, "Finance worker pays out $25 million after video call with deepfake ‘chief financial officer’"
This article talks about a specific story involving a Hong Kong finance worker who was scammed with deepfakes. It also discusses the dangers of deepfakes.
The Story:
- Hong Kong finance employee was put on a “video call” with deepfake versions of co-workers and a CFO.
- “(In the) multi-person video conference, it turns out that everyone [he saw] was fake,” senior superintendent Baron Chan Shun-ching told the city’s public broadcaster RTHK.
- The Result: “Believing everyone else on the call was real, the worker agreed to remit a total of $200 million Hong Kong dollars – about $25.6 million, the police officer added."
Other Worrying Deepfake Information:
- There are “several recent episodes in which fraudsters are believed to have used deepfake technology to modify publicly available video and other footage to cheat people out of money.”
- “Authorities across the world are growing increasingly concerned at the sophistication of deepfake technology and the nefarious uses it can be put to.”
- "The case is one of several recent episodes in which fraudsters are believed to have used deepfake technology to modify publicly available video and other footage to cheat people out of money.”
How to stop identity theft, online invasions of privacy
- Protect your Social Security number (don't give it out unnecessarily).
- Fight "phishing" - don't take the bait.
- Polish your password practices.
- Be mysterious on social networks (don't "overshare").
- Shield your computer and smartphone (use a VPN or secure browser).
- Click with caution (use secure websites).
- Check your statements.
- Stop pre-approved credit offers.
- Check your credit reports – for free.
- Ask questions (ask how your information will be used).
how to combat deepfakes
Computers are trained to detect deep fakes by “feeding computers examples of real videos as well as deep fake videos,” says CNN. Holly Ober of UC Riverside says some software can detect up to 99% of deep fakes.
Many younger people, especially those in the media industry, can usually spot deep fakes from experience. The Guardian says some giveaways are “patchy skin,” bad lip syncing, or “strange lighting.” MIT Media Lab says to watch for the following: faces, skin texture, eyes, eye brows, reflections in glasses, facial hair, moles, blinking, and lip movements. With practice, they say you can “build an intuition” to deep fakes.
Actions to Take Today
Share information about deep fakes to friends and family. This could educate them on the risks, and make them more skeptical about potential deep fakes
As MIT Labs recommends, use the Detect Fakes site. The site tests your ability to point out deep fakes. It could help your intuition when looking between real and fake content.
If you or someone you know is deepfaked, McAfee Security says you can report it to the website showing the deepfake, or even the police if it's malicious.
Credits:
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