DEEPFAKE TECHNOLOGY AND LEGAL ISSUES

The advent of social media has united the entire world into one enormous country. We have access to news from all around the world because of the internet. A few years ago, a unique approach that made it simple to edit photos and films emerged, providing incredible technology that entertained people. This method, which was first employed by people to amuse or play practical jokes on others, swiftly evolved into one of the riskiest things available on the internet right now. The deep-learning technology used in deep fakes has turned the internet into a trap. This study paper aims to comprehend the effects that deep fakes have on society, talk about the laws that prohibit these kinds of actions, and raise awareness about the sharing of these kinds of contents. As English clergyman Thomas Fuller said, “Seeing is believing,” yet when it comes to deep fakes, one can no longer trust what they are seeing. Deep fakes are dangerous for both society and individual privacy because of this. They are inexpensive to produce, but when used improperly, they have the power to sway public opinion, control large crowds to incite discontent in the community, and lead to invasions of privacy, to mention a couple of their problems.

The existing legal framework in India does not adequately address cyber offenses resulting from the usage of deep fakes. It is challenging to adequately govern the use of artificial intelligence, machine learning, and deep fakes due to the absence of specific regulations relating these technologies in the IT Act, 2000. It could be essential to amend the IT Act, 2000 to include sections that expressly address the use of deepfake and the penalties for their misuse in order to better regulate offenses caused by them. This would entail tougher legal safeguards for people whose likenesses or photos are exploited without their permission, as well as harsher punishments for those who produce or disseminate deep fakes with malevolent intent.