Delhi Police today arrested the main accused who perpetrated the deepfake video of actor Rashmika Mandanna that went viral on social media platforms in the recent past. Eemani Naveen (23), a resident of Guntur in Andhra Pradesh, was arrested by the IFSO unit of the Delhi Police. The deepfake video that showed Mandanna getting into an elevator looked real and managed to fool many triggered off a debate around the misuse of technology. Several influential celebrities raised their concerns against such gross misuse of technology that caused irreparable harm to their reputation.
In this particular viral video, Rashmika Mandanna’s face was imposed on the face of British influencer Zara Patel. The police registered a case in the matter under sections 465 and 469 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860 that deals with forgery and maligning the reputation of a person. Sections 66C (identity theft) and 66E (privacy violation) of the Information Technology Act, 2000 were also applied by the police in the matter.
Rashmika Mandanna, popular Indian actress, is not the only one to have suffered from the menace of deepfake videos. Actresses Alia Bhatt, Katrina Kaif, Kajol, have all suffered the ordeal of deepfake videos. The internet is now flooded with artificial intelligence (AI) generated fake videos and audio. As technology gets more and more sophisticated day-by-day, it is becoming increasingly difficult to spot if an image or video is fake or real.
Some unscrupulous businesses are out to mint money creating these images and videos of celebrities endorsing their brand.
Tendulkar Raises Red Flag Against His Deep Fake Video
Sachin Tendulkar recently shared a deepfake video where is seen promoting a gaming app and even making the claim that his daughter Sara Tendulkar getting good money by playing games on the mobile application.
“These videos are fake. It is disturbing to see rampant misuse of technology. Request everyone to report videos, ads & apps like these in large numbers. Social media platforms need to be alert and responsive to complaints. Swift action from their end is crucial to stopping the spread of misinformation and fake news. @GoI_MeitY, @Rajeev_GoI, and @MahaCyber1,” Sachin Tendulkar wrote on X.
Amendments to Information Technology Act being worked out
The government has taken serious note of the misuse of technology to create deepfakes videos or just deepfakes as they are commonly known. Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed his concerns about such incidents and asked for swift action to be taken in the matter.
Union Minister of State for IT Rajeev Chandrasekhar said that the government is considering amendments in the Information Technology Act to deal with such offenses. “Thank you @sachin_rt for this tweet. #DeepFakes and misinformation powered by #AI are a threat to Safety & Trust of Indian users and represent harm & legal violation that platforms have to prevent and take down. Recent Advisory by @GoI_MeitY requires platforms to comply with this 100%. We will be shortly notifying tighter rules under the IT Act to ensure compliance by platforms,” Rajeev Chandrasekhar said in response to the famous cricket’s message on X regarding the deepfake video using his persona without his knowledge and consent.
Bengali