Google Updates Policies to Combat Nonconsensual Explicit Deepfakes - 1

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Google Updates Policies to Combat Nonconsensual Explicit Deepfakes

  • Written by Kiara Fabbri Former Tech News Writer
  • Fact-Checked by Justyn Newman Former Lead Cybersecurity Editor

Yesterday, Google has announced significant policy updates aimed at helping individuals control explicit “deepfakes”. These are AI generated images and videos depicting people in sexually explicit contexts without their consent.

As one of the key updates, people can request the removal of non-consensual fake explicit imagery from Search. Google has made this process simpler and more effective. When a request is successful, Google’s systems will also filter all explicit results on similar searches and remove duplicates.

Additionally, to combat harmful content, Google has updated its ranking systems to prioritize high-quality information. Ranking updates will lower explicit fake content in search results. For searches specifically seeking explicit content with people’s names, high-quality, non-explicit content will be prioritized. This has reduced exposure to explicit images by over 70%.

Google is also working to better distinguish real, consensual explicit content from fake explicit content. Sites with high volumes of removed fake explicit imagery will be demoted.

Supporting the urgency of these updates, an independent researcher recently shared a study with WIRED , revealing the extensive reach of nonconsensual deepfake videos. The study shows that at least 244,625 videos have been uploaded to the top 35 websites hosting deepfake porn over the past seven years. Notably, 113,000 of these videos were uploaded in the first nine months of 2023 alone—a 54 percent increase from the total number of videos uploaded in 2022. These alarming figures emphasize the growing prevalence of this harmful content.

A WIRED report in March revealed that Google received over 13,000 requests to remove links to explicit deepfakes from a dozen popular websites. The tech giant complied with around 82% of these demands.This statistic demonstrates the significant volume of harmful content and the demand for removal.

Personal stories highlight the severe impact of deepfakes. Yesterday the New York time reported the story of Sabrina Javellana, a rising political star in Florida, who discovered deepfakes of herself circulating online. Facing ongoing harassment, Javellana stepped down from politics and chose a less public role.

In another case, the BBC reported this week that a family claims West Yorkshire Police failed to protect their 12-year-old daughter. Bullies had posted a deepfake explicit image of her on Snapchat. Initially, the police told the family that nothing could be done because Snapchat is US-based. The image traumatized the girl and spread widely.

Google’s policy updates are a significant step toward addressing the deepfake crisis. However, the issue’s complexity requires ongoing efforts and collaborations to fully tackle the problem.

New Startup Goes Viral For $99 AI Friend Necklace - 2

Photo by Manu Del Moral on Unsplash

New Startup Goes Viral For $99 AI Friend Necklace

  • Written by Andrea Miliani Former Tech News Expert
  • Fact-Checked by

The new startup Friend is developing an AI wearable device, called Friend, and its pre-order campaign along with its controversial commercial and business decisions have gotten people’s attention.

Avi Schiffmann, Friend’s CEO, shared on X earlier this week the video to promote the new product, valued at $99, and expected to be shipped in the first quarter of 2025 to the US and Canadian markets “on a first come, first serve basis”, as stated on its website.

introducing friend. not imaginary. order now at https://t.co/7kGiH5pQVK pic.twitter.com/qU58xNvX5v — Avi (@AviSchiffmann) July 30, 2024

Besides the commercial, the domain name also caught the attention of X users since Schiffmann said he paid $1.8 million for it. This purchase was later confirmed by the tech news website 404 Media and, according to TechCrunch , represents a large portion of the $2.5 million in funding recently raised by the company.

Schiffmann, a Harvard dropout, gained fame during the pandemic for creating an award-winning website to track the spread of COVID-19 when he was just 17 years old in 2020.

According to FastCompany , after his successful website, Schiffmann traveled solo to Japan and experienced isolation and loneliness while there. These emotions apparently led him to the idea of an AI companion that can go with you everywhere and listen to everything, which was first introduced last October .

Schiffmann’s post with the new video commercial has already reached over 21 million views on the social media platform. Users have shared different thoughts. “I appreciate you making it in the style of an A24 horror movie trailer, ensuring that I will never contemplate buying this,” said one user. “Good for you for trying something very different,” added another one.