Deepfake Fraud Surges More Than 1,000 Percent, Insiders Say It’s Just the Beginning

The use of AI-generated deepfakes has been an entertainment sensation online for years, but no one is laughing now. Deepfakes scams in the United States have soared this year, costing individuals and businesses millions in damages. Cyber crime and AI experts explain how to derail a potential deepfake attack.

Social media profiles are a treasure trove for criminals looking to create hyper-realistic fakes. Darwin Laganzon/Pixabay

As the line between fact and fiction gets harder to distinguish, online criminals need just two hours to create a realistic, computer-generated “deepfake” product that can ruin someone’s life.

The surge in popularity of hyper-realistic photos, audio, and videos developed with artificial intelligence (AI)—commonly known as deepfakes—has become an internet sensation.