Climate activist Greta Thunberg that she is in the photo with Ja21 chairman Willem Rutjens. The political party uses the image for a campaign for nuclear energy as a reliable energy source. But the pair did not posed together for the photo: the plate was made with AI and is therefore fake. Is that possible?
According to Sander Duivestein from Oisterwijk, expert in the field of artificial intelligence and deepfake, making such a fake photo is now child’s play. “It is very easy to put such an image together,” he says. “Probably the best man has never met Greta Thunberg in person. It is a fantasized image that looks very real.”
“Actually it is voter fraud.”
He continues: “But you have to wonder if you should want this as a political party at all, because actually it is voter’s illusion. You are manipulating reality.”
According to Duivestein it happens more often that politicians use artificial intelligence. For example, the PVV recently used AI regularly to strengthen their party points. “The party used manipulated photos of boat refugees who invaded our country and looked very threatening. That was simply not true.”
Group chairman Rutjens sees no problem in handing out the stickers, with the photo of him and Greta Thunberg on it, as part of the campaign. He announced that on Friday. The Bosschenaar finds Thunberg ‘a symbol’ and that is why there is nothing wrong with it that he put her on the AI image. In addition, the question is whether the Swedish climate activist has given permission for the AI photo.
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Companies such as Microsoft and Adobe Photoshop try to reduce the use of AI, but according to Duivestein it is very difficult to get that done. “Actually it is almost impossible to control. Technologies to arm you against AI, for example through water brands, are constantly bypassed. It is a kind of cat and mouse game between what is real and what is not.”
“There are infinitely many tools on the market, which do not use a digital watermark, and where you can just edit everything for free. For example, Taylor Swift on her album covers was very easily brought to life with video manipulation. And new tools come on the market every week.”
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According to the expert, many people no longer realize what is real and what is not. “Two years ago was the first AI explosion with a photo of the pope in a white puffer jacket. Eighty thousand people worldwide kicked in it.”
“The whole concept of truth is subject to inflation.”
“The whole concept of ‘truth’ is subject to inflation,” says Duivestein. “People must be made aware of what you can do with AI tools. By definition you can no longer trust what comes from the internet.”
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