YouTube Expands Deepfake Detection Tool to Protect Personalities Against AI-Generated Content

YouTube is finally expanding its deepfake detection tool on the platform to help combat fake, AI-generated content that was uploaded without a person’s consent.

AI deepfakes have been a massive problem since the emergence of generative AI, and many people have fallen victim to having their likeness used without their permission, which has become rampant on the likes of YouTube for many years now.

YouTube Expands AI Deepfake Detection Tool

YouTube’s “Likeness Detection” tool, which was launched last year, is now expanding to give a new batch of users a way to fight against AI deepfakes of themselves and take down the content tarnishing their name and image.

According to the streaming platform, it is now launching a pilot program for a group of journalists, government officials, and political candidates to use the likeness detection tool and put a stop to deepfakes.

YouTube said that the tool is similar to its Content ID feature, but it will search the videos that have AI-generated content if they have impersonations of the said personality.

YouTube said that it launched the likeness detection tool last year and was first made available to content creators under the Partner Program to help them manage online content and stop AI impersonation.

Use YouTube Tool vs. AI Deepfake

YouTube’s likeness detection tool is promising as it helps find AI deepfake videos of the individuals under the program, but it is not a guarantee that these will get taken down on the platform.

According to YouTube, concerned individuals may still report or file a case about an AI deepfake video using their likeness, but its content would still be subject to review by its team. Should they find the video not harmful, citing examples like satire content, YouTube may not remove it from the platform.

In the past years, YouTube has been infamous for hosting AI misinformation, with some containing deepfaked videos of renowned individuals. Since then, the platform has enforced several policies and tools to help fight against the problem.