The ex-India national cricket team member shared the viral artificially generated video on social media platform X (formerly Twitter) and said that the video in question and any similar videos are “fake.” “These videos are fake. It is disturbing to see rampant misuse of technology. Requesting everyone to report videos, ads and apps like these in large numbers,” he said.

Tendulkar also directed his concern towards social media platforms and said they need to be alert and responsive to such complaints. “Swift action from their end is crucial to stopping the spread of misinformation and deepfakes,” he further wrote.

What is deepfake technology?

Deepfake artificial intelligence(AI) is a type of emerging technology, which is used to create convincing deceptive image, audio and video footage. “The underlying technology can replace faces, manipulate facial expressions, synthesise faces, and synthesise speech. Deepfakes can depict someone appearing to say or do something that they in fact never said or did and are aimed at spreading misinformation,” the United States’ Government Accountability Office (GAO) explains.

Sachin Tendulkar’s deepfake video goes viral

In the fake video, Tendulkar is seen endorsing a mobile application ‘Aviator’ as he says his daughter (Sara Tendulkar) also plays it. The video further depicts Tendulkar as saying that it’s also very easy to make money via the application and can be easily downloaded on smartphones.

Rashmika Mandana’s deepfake video sparked row

Notably, Tendulkar is not the first celebrity to have fallen victim to the concerning AI trend. In November last year, a viral deepfake video of actress Rashmika Mandana also surfaced online, raising concerns about privacy rights as AI increasingly integrates with social media.

The government, taking note of the harmful trend, had also sent a notice to social media platforms in December, asking them to comply with the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021 and advised them to implement more measures to crack down aggressively on fabricated ‘deepfake’ clips.

Experts have flagged the need to curb this growing trend, which is anticipated to further add to the problem of misinformation and privacy violations, especially in light of elections and non-consensual pornography.

First Published: Jan 15 2024 | 2:22 PM IST