The sexually explicit videos haven’t been stolen by hackers, or commissioned by porn studios featuring celebrity lookalikes. Instead, these clips have been made using artificial intelligence (AI) technology.
The images, called “deepfakes,” are porn stars with their faces swapped for those of famous actresses and other celebrities.
This new technology requires only three basic steps: collect a photoset of a person, choose a pornographic video to manipulate, and then wait for the computer to do the rest, although it can take more than 40 hours just for a short clip.
The most popular “deepfakes” feature celebrities, but the process can work on anyone as long as there is a clear enough picture of the person.
The image of actress Natalie Portman was computer-generated from hundreds of stills and featured in an explicit video.
According to magazine Variety, this bizarre phenomenon took an unexpected turn in January when a Reddit user published an app that allows anyone without much technical knowledge to produce their own deepfake videos.
“The app has been downloaded more than 100,000 times since its release, according to its creator – and new clips are being uploaded by the dozens,” the publication said.
Natalie Portman, Emma Watson, Margot Robbie, Taylor Swift, Daisy Ridley and Gal Gadot are among several actresses who have had their faces merged with pornography.
— ˗ˏˋ♀ˎˊ˗ (@jpegcath) February 2, 2018
Many fear that the repercussions of this technology could go far beyond sex and celebrities. “Imagine not being able to hold politicians accountable with video anymore because it could be fake,” said Reddit user ThatPickelGuy.
“This is turning into an episode of ‘Black Mirror’,” wrote a user going by the name CapntainIceberg, referring to a futuristic dystopian sci-fi series.
— G.M.M (@Muhtar05) January 22, 2018
“Nothing is real anymore,” the user hammerthefish added.
— Samantha Cole (@samleecole) January 24, 2018
— Cliff Bleszinski (@therealcliffyb) January 27, 2018
— Spiros Margaris (@SpirosMargaris) January 27, 2018
