The Prime Minister gave the fresh warning during his nearly hour-long speech while chairing the last formal meeting of his Council of Ministers in New Delhi on March 3.
“Be careful before making any statements. Nowadays there is a trend of deepfake where voice etc can be changed, be careful about this,” NDTV quoted a source as crediting the Prime Minister.
The meeting was convened to brainstorm the vision document 'Viksit Bharat 2047' ahead of the Lok Sabha elections from April to May. It was held a day after the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) released its first list of 195 candidates for the upcoming Lok Sabha 2024 elections. Prime Minister Modi will once again contest from Varanasi, UP, while Home Minister Amit Shah will hail from Gandhinagar, Gujarat.
By deepfakes, the Prime Minister referred to AI-generated audio, images and videos of candidates that have the potential to distort reality in the run-up to the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.
Also read: What is Prime Minister Modi's Viksit Bharat 2047 plan ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections? 5 things to know
The Prime Minister had also issued similar warnings earlier. In December last year, he highlighted the problem of deepfakes on social media, saying AI-generated videos and photos look real. Earlier in November, Prime Minister Modi mentioned an example of a deepfake video of him doing the garba. Later, Prime Minister's lookalike said it was not a deep fake but it was him in the viral garba clip.
There are concerns that the upcoming Lok Sabha elections may witness a barrage of video and audio clips of political leaders making controversial or disparaging remarks about their opponents. Experts say the misleading content can be used to fabricate a false story.
These computer-generated fake videos are already targeting Indian politicians. In the 2023 Madhya Pradesh elections, two doctored video clips of superstar Amitabh Bachchan on 'Kaun Banega Crorepati' had also surfaced, calling then Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan a liar, and featuring Congress Party CM hopeful Kamal Nath was shown in a positive light. polls.
In November, the Bharat Rashtra Samiti (BRS) filed a complaint with the Election Commission (EC) against the Congress, alleging that the party was using 'deepfake' technology to create fabricated content targeting party president K Chandrasekhar Rao and other prominent party leaders and candidates contesting the 2023 Assembly elections in Telangana.
The country's first attempt at AI interference in polls was during the 2020 Delhi Assembly elections. A deepfake video of BJP MP Manoj Tiwari criticizing Prime Minister Arvind Kejriwal's policies in different languages surfaced on the internet. Tiwari is the BJP candidate from Northeast Delhi in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls.
These unregulated deepfakes pose a global challenge because they blur the line between real and fake. In January, US law enforcement agencies said they were investigating reports of an apparent robocall using AI to mimic President Joe Biden's voice and discourage voters in the state from coming to the polls during the New Hampshire primary. The US presidential elections are also scheduled for 2024.
AI was widely used in last year's presidential elections in Argentina, which were ultimately won by Javier Milei, according to a New York Times report. “AI's prominent role in the Argentine campaign and the political debate it has sparked underline the growing prevalence of the technology and show that, with its growing power and falling costs, it is now likely to be a factor in many democratic elections around the world,” the spokesperson said. report titled “Is Argentina the First AI Election?” read.
Indian elections are vulnerable to AI abuse due to the cheap internet and its massive penetration. The number of online deepfake videos has increased 550 percent since 2019 to 95,820, according to a 2023 State of Deepfakes report from U.S.-based Home Security Heroes. India is the sixth most vulnerable country, according to the report.
The government is also cautious. In December 2023, the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) issued an advisory to all intermediaries to comply with existing IT regulations. “The directive specifically addresses growing concerns about disinformation enabled by AI – Deepfakes,” the government had said.
The government also plans to introduce a law to regulate AI misuse. Last month, Union Minister of State for Electronics and Information Technology Rajeev Chandrasekhar said the government will come out with a draft regulatory framework for AI by June-July.
Unlock a world of benefits! From insightful newsletters to real-time inventory management, breaking news and a personalized news feed – it's all there, just one click away! Log in now!
View all political news and updates on DailyExertNews. View the latest Budget 2024 promotions here. Download the Mint News app for daily market updates and live business news.
. or less
Published: Mar 4, 2024 09:02 IST