As much as I love a deepfake Anakin Skywalker, it might be wise to get more AI-focused firewalls in place prior to the next federal election.

Many have raised red flags around AI (artificial intelligence), with numerous tech types having signed a statement referring to it as one of our greatest existential threats.

含羞草研究社淢itigating the risk of extinction from AI should be a global priority alongside other societal-scale risks such as pandemics and nuclear war,含羞草研究社� reads the statement, shared by the Center for AI Safety.

I hadn含羞草研究社檛 thought of deepfakes as being part of that threat, at least not I recently started seeing ads that didn含羞草研究社檛 sit right.

Deepfakes use a type of AI to create imagery and audio. If you含羞草研究社檙e a Star Wars fan like myself, you got a taste of deepfake AI in Gareth Edwards含羞草研究社� movie Rogue One, where it was used to recreate the likenesses of the later Carrie Fisher and Peter Cushing. Continuing on that theme, I love comedian/impersonator Charlie Hopkinson含羞草研究社檚 YouTube videos in which he critiques Star Wars films while deepfaked to look like disheveled characters from the movies (his Anakin Skywalker and Obi-Wan Kenobi slay me).

Curiously, while watching these Hopkinson gems and other Internet content, I recently started seeing scam ads featuring likenesses of other real-life celebrities. One had Elon Musk rabbiting on about how you need to invest in, er, whatever. (Apparently, artificial Elons have been shilling get-rich schemes for a while now online.) Another scam circulating on social media features a deepfake of YouTuber Jimmy Donaldson, aka Mr. Beast.

含羞草研究社淟ots of people are getting this deepfake scam ad of me 含羞草研究社� are social media platforms ready to handle the rise of AI deepfakes? This is a serious problem,含羞草研究社� Donaldson commented on X (formerly Twitter).

Lots of people are getting this deepfake scam ad of me含羞草研究社� are social media platforms ready to handle the rise of AI deepfakes? This is a serious problem

含羞草研究社� MrBeast (@MrBeast)

Regardless of what you think of Mr. Beast, he is right; it is a serious problem, and not just in the threat it poses to celebrities. Deeper, darker deepfake concerns have been raised around exploitation and intimidation.

And then there含羞草研究社檚 politics.

This week, the Canadian government含羞草研究社檚 Communications Security Establishment (CSE) issued an alert stating 含羞草研究社渃yber threat activity is more likely to happen in Canada含羞草研究社檚 next federal election than in the past.含羞草研究社�

含羞草研究社淐yber threat actors are increasingly using generative artificial intelligence (AI) to enhance online disinformation. It含羞草研究社檚 very likely that foreign adversaries or hacktivists will use generative AI to influence voters ahead of Canada含羞草研究社檚 next federal election.含羞草研究社�

Though the statement doesn含羞草研究社檛 speak specifically to deepfake AI, it is an increasingly accessible tech tool that I wouldn含羞草研究社檛 be surprised to see utilized to manipulate perceptions and sway voters one way or another.

And in a country where, according to a recent Leger poll, 11 per cent of us believe the earth is flat, those hacktivists don含羞草研究社檛 exactly have their work cut out for them.

While CSE assures it含羞草研究社檚 doing what it can to protect Canada含羞草研究社檚 democratic process, the Canadian Bar Association argues criminal law doesn含羞草研究社檛 go far enough to protect the public from harm posed by targeted deepfakes.

Unfortunately, technology advances quickly, and unless a concentrated effort is made to put necessary protections in place, we含羞草研究社檙e soon going to find the line between reality and deepfake much more difficult to discern, let alone agree upon.

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