Deepfake videos of RBI Governor: RBI warns public to be careful

 The Reserve Bank of India on Tuesday placed on its website that the deepfake videos of the Governor are being circulated on social media that claim the launch of or support for some investment schemes by the RBI.

“These videos attempt to advise people to invest their money in such schemes, through the use of technological tools”, said RBI.

The central bank made it clear that its officials are not involved in such activities and strongly denied any connection to these schemes. It emphasised that members of the public should remain vigilant and not fall prey to these fraudulent videos.

The Banking regulator therefore warned members of the cautioned against engaging with and falling prey to such deepfake videos circulated over social media.

What is a deepfake?

The word deepfake originated from deep learning to create and disseminate fake pictures, videos, or audio on social media platforms. Deepfakes are generally photos, videos, or even audio that are edited or generated through the use of artificial intelligence (AI) tools to replicate real or non-existent people. People can use this type of technology to mask a person’s face and generate a mapped face of someone else’s face on another person’s body, and so on. It can manipulate videos to make it appear as though someone is saying or doing something they never actually said or did. In this case, scammers have used deepfake technology to make it look like the RBI Governor and other top officials are promoting financial schemes.

Risks to the public:

Fake videos like these pose significant risks to the public:

Financial Loss: People might invest their money in fraudulent schemes, believing they are endorsed by trusted authorities like the RBI.

Data Theft: Scammers could use such schemes to steal sensitive personal and financial information.

Erosion of Trust: These scams can damage the public’s trust in genuine organisations and their officials.

How to identify a deepfake?

After the expansion of AI intelligence, it has become difficult to identify the difference between a deepfake and a real video, as AI has become more efficient and accurate at visual representation. However, there are several ways that deepfakes can be detected. Some deepfakes images contain clear spatial and visual inconsistencies, such as differences in noise patterns, or colour differences between edited and unedited portions. The General Public can always cross-verify investment advise or schemes claiming to be endorsed by official institutions.  For RBI-related news, you may visit the RBI’s official website or contact their helpline for accurate information. Further, do not trust anything you have seen on social media, and share your details with unverified sources or platforms, particularly videos or messages asking for money or promoting schemes.

Related Posts: