Met Gala Deepfakes of Katy Perry and Rihanna Went Viral. Why It's a Warning for Businesses

This week's Met Gala was a star-studded event. But amidst the glamour, a different kind of spectacle unfolded online: AI-generated images of Katy Perry, Rihanna, and Lady Gaga went viral on social media, and were so realistic they tricked Perry's own mother into believing she had attended. Perry responded, "lol mom the AI got you too, BEWARE!" These images, which have already been viewed millions of times, have reignited concerns over the increasing prevalence and sophistication of deepfakes.

According to a recent report from Mastercard, 37 percent of businesses have experienced targeting through deepfake voice fraud, while 29 percent have encountered deepfake videos. Industry leaders are also speaking out about the risks that deepfakes pose: Warren Buffett recently revealed that a deepfake video of him was convincing enough that he could imagine it duping him into wiring money overseas. Earlier this week, OpenAI founder Sam Altman pointed to the sophistication of deepfakes as more of a concern than AI-driven election misinformation.

As AI technology continues to advance, the threat of deception looms larger. But while there may be no foolproof solution, businesses can take proactive measures to protect themselves, as outlined in a recent report from Deloitte. These measures can include ongoing investment in detection tools (including AI-based detection systems) and awareness of the AI landscape, as well as education for employees about the growing threat posed by deepfake attacks.

The Deloitte report also recommends that businesses add a verification process for payment requests to avoid facing risks such as befell the Hong Kong company that lost $25.6 million in February when an employee fell for an elaborate deepfake video scam. The Deloitte report emphasizes that incidents like this could be mitigated through the use of multifactor authentication, which leverages a combination of passwords, pins, and biometric authentication to safeguard data, as well as a clear verification protocol for payment requests, particularly those from senior executives.