The US National Security Agency (NSA) and the FBI have published a cybersecurity fact sheet regarding ‘deepfake’ technology which – they warn – can be used for “malicious purposes” by spreading “false information on political, social, military or economic. issues that cause confusion, discomfort and uncertainty.”
The term ‘deepfake’ applies to any media file created or manipulated using artificial intelligence technology.
These tools and techniques have been around for a long time, but the extent of their use has recently increased “while the complexity” of exploiting such opportunities has decreased. Likewise, it no longer takes days or weeks to “make a sophisticated fake,” but requires “a portion of time with limited or no technical experience,” the document explained.
Threats to national security
The alert highlights the “obvious implications for disinformation and propaganda in times of conflict,” as well as threats to national security, especially as they relate to the US Government, the Department of Defense and the Defense Industrial Base.
“Organizations and their employees must learn to recognize the craft and techniques of ‘deepfake’ and have a plan to respond and mitigate the impact if they are attacked,” warned Candice Rockell Gerstner, an application that research mathematician at NSA specializing in forensic multimedia. .
The announcement comes less than a year and a half before the 2024 US presidential election and amid an investigation by Republicans in the US Congress to open a political trial against President Joe Biden.
