Deepfake technology in social media: Social and legal implications in India

Deepfake technology is a latest AI tool which is used for manipulation and fabrication of audio, video and images. This technology first appeared in 2017. It is the realistic swap of a person’s face and voice with some other person. Social media has been the major platform for providing deepfake contents. The social media users are witnessing the effects of deepfake technology. Although there are few advantages it has been widely used for illegal purposes. It has been an emerging threat in the virtual world. It has the power to replace the original content with fake which looks real. Lots of misinformation has been spread due to deepfake. The deepfake content can manipulate public opinion. The public has begun to doubt on the originality of the content spread in the social media. The technology has done psychological damage to many people. It is considered to be illegal technology in many aspects and there are penal provisions relating to usage of deepfake. There are certain inconsistencies in the current Indian laws with regard to deepfake. The study aims at giving awareness about the dark side of deepfake technology in social media. The research will be based upon socio-legal effects of deepfake technology in India