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posted by chromas on Tuesday May 05 2020, @01:01AM   Printer-friendly
from the fake-it-'til-you-break-it dept.

"If you were to ask me what the key risk in the 2020 election is, I would say it's not deepfakes," said Kathryn Harrison, the founder and CEO of the DeepTrust Alliance, a coalition fighting deepfakes and other kinds of digital disinformation (that is: intentional, malicious false info). "It's actually going to be a true video that will pop up in late October that we won't be able to prove [whether] it's true or false."

This is the bigger, more devious threat, what's known as the Liar's Dividend. The term, popular in deepfake-research circles, means the mere existence of deepfakes gives more credibility to denials. Essentially, deepfakes make it easier for candidates caught on tape to convince voters of their innocence -- even if they're guilty -- because people have learned they can't believe their eyes anymore.

[...] "I don't think anyone's going to see a piece of video content, real or fake, and suddenly change their vote on Election Day," said Clint Watts, distinguished research fellow at the Foreign Policy Research Institute who testified to Congress last year about deepfakes and national security. "Trying to convince people Joe Biden touches people too much or whatever….I don't see how people's opinions can be really shaped in this media environment with that."

What worries him more are deepfakes that undermine election integrity -- like an authoritative figure reporting misinformation about turnout, polling site disruptions or voting machines changing your ballot.

Another worry: Deepfakes could destabilize the vote on US soil by causing havoc at a US outpost abroad. Imagine a fake that triggers an attack like the one on the US diplomatic mission in Benghazi, Libya, in 2012, which became a political flashpoint in the US. State actors like China or Russia, for example, could find an effective strategy in forged videos that endanger US soldiers or US diplomats, particularly in war-torn regions or countries ruled by a dictator, where populations are already struggling to separate truth from propaganda and rumor.

[...] No matter what form an election deepfake tries to take, the time to be on highest alert is right before you cast your vote.

"If it happens 48 hours out of the Election Day," Watts said, "we may not have a chance to fix it."


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  • (Score: 0, Informative) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday May 05 2020, @01:30PM (17 children)

    by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday May 05 2020, @01:30PM (#990668)

    Russian army didn't invade. They were defending Ukraine against a U.S. instigated (under Obama, remember him?) coup.

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  • (Score: 2, Insightful) by khallow on Tuesday May 05 2020, @08:15PM (16 children)

    by khallow (3766) Subscriber Badge on Tuesday May 05 2020, @08:15PM (#990849) Journal

    Russian army didn't invade.

    There's no other way they'd end up taking over Crimea.

    They were defending Ukraine against a U.S. instigated (under Obama, remember him?) coup.

    Not even trying to lie well.

    • (Score: 2) by PartTimeZombie on Tuesday May 05 2020, @10:25PM (6 children)

      by PartTimeZombie (4827) on Tuesday May 05 2020, @10:25PM (#990885)

      I would have thought Soylent News was too small for Russian trolls to bother with but who knows?

      Unless that's our resident flat earth, anti-vaxx conspiracy theory A/C. He believes some pretty far-out stuff.

      • (Score: 2, Insightful) by khallow on Wednesday May 06 2020, @01:02AM (5 children)

        by khallow (3766) Subscriber Badge on Wednesday May 06 2020, @01:02AM (#990924) Journal

        Unless that's our resident flat earth, anti-vaxx conspiracy theory A/C. He believes some pretty far-out stuff.

        Doubtful, the guy has his own weird standards. We have a few pro-Russian Soylentils here.

        But even given the Flat Earth example, it amazes me how people can gloss over the Russian misdeeds while ignoring the obvious parallels to the Nazis of the last century: claiming this was merely a non-invasion rescuing Ukraine from a "coup" while ignoring that only the tasty part of the Ukraine got so "rescued" with the help of a bunch of invading Russian soldiers doing the perfunctory minimum theater to claim that they were freeing anyone from anyone. The Nazis would admire such efficient handiwork and heap scorn on the tools so willing to lap it up.

        • (Score: 2) by PartTimeZombie on Wednesday May 06 2020, @05:08AM (4 children)

          by PartTimeZombie (4827) on Wednesday May 06 2020, @05:08AM (#990981)

          We have a few pro-Russian Soylentils here.

          I hadn't noticed. Weird. I wonder where they live?

          In recent news [aljazeera.com]
          That sort of thing seems to be quite common.

          • (Score: 2, Funny) by khallow on Wednesday May 06 2020, @12:48PM (3 children)

            by khallow (3766) Subscriber Badge on Wednesday May 06 2020, @12:48PM (#991037) Journal
            fustakrakich is the most prominent one. They showed up in force in this thread [soylentnews.org]. TL;DR Runaway posted some Russian propaganda "time line" for the Ukraine, I point out that it's propaganda, and drama ensues.

            That sort of thing seems to be quite common.

            Well, authoritarian governments need their Emmanuel Goldsteins to distract the public. Maduro certainly isn't going to stay in power under the strength of his economic reforms!

            • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday May 06 2020, @04:21PM (1 child)

              by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday May 06 2020, @04:21PM (#991088)

              Hah, you're more likely a Russian shill than fusty. Not that I really think he isn't, but you have a habit of sticking to an agenda in the face easily verified reality. That is something the shills do, and your pattern of arguing seems to fit the bill. Perhaps you're just a brainwashed propaganda zombie, so hard to tell what flavor of asshole people are these days.

              • (Score: 1) by khallow on Wednesday May 06 2020, @10:15PM

                by khallow (3766) Subscriber Badge on Wednesday May 06 2020, @10:15PM (#991181) Journal

                Not that I really think he isn't, but you have a habit of sticking to an agenda in the face easily verified reality.

                Rational people are like that. Your easily verified reality needs to be just that. When it's not, there's no reason to change one's mind. I've had many endless arguments with people who insist that there's some easily verified reality supporting their arguments or point of view, but they can't ever find it. Those Russian trolls are top of the list.

            • (Score: 2) by PartTimeZombie on Wednesday May 06 2020, @08:24PM

              by PartTimeZombie (4827) on Wednesday May 06 2020, @08:24PM (#991148)

              I hadn't really inferred that from fustakrakich. I usually argue with him about the usefulness of voters in the US political system. I might need to read his comments with more care in future.:-)

              I am pretty sure those Emmanuel Goldsteins in Venezuela will wind up having been paid by somebody in the US, but the plot has thickened a bit there. Maduro is now claiming the Americans they've captured were "members of Donald Trump's security" which stretches credibility beyond breaking really.

              On the other hand, that guy Guaido is just a sock puppet.

              As is usual in Latin America it is the ordinary people who will lose out, one way or another.

    • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday May 06 2020, @03:37AM (8 children)

      by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday May 06 2020, @03:37AM (#990961)

      Ah, so you're denying the coup of 2014, eh?

      I guess your kool-aid is better

      • (Score: 1) by khallow on Wednesday May 06 2020, @04:35AM (7 children)

        by khallow (3766) Subscriber Badge on Wednesday May 06 2020, @04:35AM (#990974) Journal

        Ah, so you're denying the coup of 2014, eh?

        Not at all. Just saying it was just. And as I recall, Russia was on the wrong end of that one.

        • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday May 06 2020, @09:38PM (6 children)

          by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday May 06 2020, @09:38PM (#991162)

          That's some heavy shillin', man!

          An aggressor claiming his wars are just. What have we come to?

          • (Score: 1) by khallow on Wednesday May 06 2020, @10:17PM (5 children)

            by khallow (3766) Subscriber Badge on Wednesday May 06 2020, @10:17PM (#991182) Journal

            An aggressor claiming his wars are just.

            Who again is occupying land in Ukraine? Russia, not the US. Narrative isn't working for you, bro.

            • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday May 06 2020, @11:36PM (4 children)

              by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday May 06 2020, @11:36PM (#991199)

              Your IronMaiden overthrew a democratically elected government in 2014. It is very common for you gringos to do such things. Talk to your buddy, Joe Biden

              • (Score: 1) by khallow on Thursday May 07 2020, @04:15AM (3 children)

                by khallow (3766) Subscriber Badge on Thursday May 07 2020, @04:15AM (#991242) Journal

                Your IronMaiden overthrew a democratically elected government in 2014.

                Which had the landing gear down for tyranny. Let us keep in mind the anti-protest laws [wikipedia.org] that were passed into law on January 17, 2014, shortly before the Yanukovych administration fell. The "democratically elected government" should have fallen! Democracy isn't a suicide pact.

                For all the whining, nobody has ever shown that the Euromaidan have ever been a problem for democracy like their predecessors were! Just vague accusations that they're "Nazis". Well, I see Russia as being more Nazi-like due to a higher degree of Fascism and a flair for ridiculous propaganda.

                • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday May 07 2020, @06:19AM (2 children)

                  by Anonymous Coward on Thursday May 07 2020, @06:19AM (#991252)

                  Ah, I see, so you support Nazi takeovers, because you believe tabloid propaganda trying to sell a war. I never took you for one of those! I thought you were better than that.

                  • (Score: 1) by khallow on Thursday May 07 2020, @12:06PM (1 child)

                    by khallow (3766) Subscriber Badge on Thursday May 07 2020, @12:06PM (#991275) Journal

                    so you support Nazi takeovers

                    I haven't supported the one in Russia.

                    • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday May 08 2020, @04:01AM

                      by Anonymous Coward on Friday May 08 2020, @04:01AM (#991540)

                      You support the 2014 Nazi takeover of Ukraine.