Amid rising menace of deepfakes during elections, focus back on guardrails

Even as the law enforcement agencies are grappling with the rising tide of deepfakes during the ongoing national elections, legal experts have called for specific legislation to deal with the menace.

Deepfakes were never so close to reality, thanks to the rise of Artificial Intelligence (AI). And experts believe that this technology is just in its infancy, as the rise of AI will open the floodgates.

“Advancements in AI and machine learning have made it easier for anyone proficient in digital tools to create convincing deepfake content,” said Akshay Garkel, partner of Cyber and IT Risk at Grant Thornton Bharat.

 

Although precise figures are elusive, there is a perceived surge in electoral deepfakes.

ALSO READ: Delhi Police summons Telangana CM in Amit Shah's doctored video case

Garkel noted that fake content creation has risen across various motivations, from personal grudges to political subterfuge.

Pawan Prabhat, co-founder of Shorthills AI, underscored the role of emerging technologies like Sora, EMO, and Vasa-1 in producing “convincing” deepfakes.

“This surge is especially evident this year because of elections taking place in major democracies like India and the US, as well as in other countries globally,” he said.

Despite the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology issuing an AI-specific advisory earlier this year, concerns remain regarding the misuse of AI tools to sway voters among the 900 million internet users in India.

On Sunday, the Delhi Police had registered an FIR and launched a probe into the alleged fake video of Union Home Minister Amit Shah, in which he is purportedly seen advocating scrapping of reservation of Scheduled Castes (SCs), Scheduled Tribes (STs), and Other Backward Classes (OBCs).

And on Wednesday, a petition was filed in the Delhi High Court, seeking an urgent hearing

against the circulation of deepfake videos during the ongoing election.

Existing Indian laws offer some recourse against deepfakes, with provisions under the IT Rules 2021 addressing dissemination and impersonation on social media platforms.

“Rules 3(1)(b)(v) and 3(1)(b)(vi) impose obligations on intermediaries (such as social media platforms) to inform their users to not disseminate ‘misinformation’ or content that is ‘patently false and untrue or misleading’ or content which ‘impersonates another person’,” explained Ranjana Adhikari, partner at IndusLawsaid.

Rule 3(2)(b) of the act states that social media platforms must take down content which is like impersonation, including artificially morphed images of an individual, within 24 hours of the receipt of a complaint.

However, legal experts advocate for a specific legislation targeting the deepfake creation ecosystem to address its societal impact comprehensively. Something that the US has just tabled and several other countries are drafting.

“Legislations targeting the deepfake creation ecosystem will act as a deterrent while providing a legal recourse for victims, thereby enabling a comprehensive approach to combating the issue,” Garkel said.

Santosh Jinugu, partner at Deloitte India, said, “Establishing regulations around deepfakes in India is crucial to safeguarding individuals, businesses, and societal integrity from the potential harms and misuses of this technology.”

Experts also suggested that raising public awareness and collaboration between government agencies, technology firms, and research institutions is imperative to tackling this issue.

Some also advocated self-verification and restraint.

Prabhat said that eliminating these videos completely is “tough”. “But we can be careful about what we believe. It is best to trust news from big-reliable sources.”


Revanth Reddy's lawyer denies he posted doctored video of Shah's speech

Telangana Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy's lawyer appeared before Delhi Police on Wednesday and asserted that the Congress leader had nothing to do with creating or posting the doctored video of Amit Shah's speech.

Reddy, who was summoned by the police here for allegedly posting the video on X, hit out at the BJP at a rally in Telangana, accusing Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah of adopting a vengeful attitude against him for questioning the BJP over its stand on reservations.

Police sources said they are close to identifying the creator of the deepfake video but before reaching out to the suspect they have to verify about others who uploaded or forwarded it.

Notices have also been served to five more people from different opposition parties for allegedly sharing the video.

Jharkhand Congress president Rajesh Thakur has also been summoned by the Delhi Police on May 2 in connection with the probe, a party spokesperson said on Wednesday.

"I received the notice from Delhi Police on Tuesday. But, it is beyond my understanding why the notice was served to me. This is nothing but anarchy," Thakur said.

Reddy's lawyer appeared before the Delhi Police on Wednesday after summonses were issued against the Telangana Congress chief Reddy and four members of the Pradesh Congress Committee for allegedly posting the video on X. 

(With inputs from PTI)