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Deepfakes are out of control – is it too late to stop them?

AI-manipulated audio clips, images and videos have been used to harass people, scam money and influence elections, despite efforts to rein them in

By Jeremy Hsu

21 February 2024

A deepfake of Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy went viral in 2022

OLIVIER DOULIERY/AFP via Getty Images

Singer-songwriter and billionaire Taylor Swift shares something in common with a growing number of non-celebrities: the appalling experience of featuring in fake sexual images made by strangers using artificial intelligence.

Barely a week after explicit AI‑generated images of Swift went viral online last month, more AI-manipulated images and videos appeared that falsely portrayed her expressing support for US presidential candidate Donald Trump. These incidents were preceded by a scam campaign that cloned the voices of Swift and other celebrities…

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