Google Search Offers Users Better Protection Against Explicit Deepfakes
Google Search on Wednesday updated its removal processes and ranking systems to combat non-consensual fake explicit images, also known as deepfakes. The tech giant’s new strategy involves quickly removing explicit deepfakes and demoting websites that host such content from appearing high in search results. The company said it has also simplified the process of requesting the removal of explicit deepfakes. The changes are intended to discourage bad actors from using artificial intelligence (AI) to generate malicious content.
Google Search to Remove Deepfakes
In a blog afterGoogle announced new changes to address the rise of explicit deepfakes. Many cybercriminals are using AI image and video generation tools to generate fake explicit content about people and post it online. Celebrities, social media influencers and other recognizable personalities are particularly targeted by deepfakes.
Given the nature of the threat, Google has updated its content removal process. Now, when someone successfully tries to remove deepfakes from Search, Google’s systems will take additional steps. The company said that Search will also filter out all explicit results for similar searches for the individual and remove any duplicates of that image that it can find. Notably, the removal will occur from Google Search rankings and not appear on the search results page.
“These efforts are intended to give people more peace of mind, especially if they’re concerned about similar content about them surfacing in the future,” Google said.
The tech giant has also updated its ranking systems. When explicit deepfakes are requested on Google Search with a specific query, the company will aim to show high-quality, non-explicit content instead. The post highlighted that the technique can reduce exposure to fake explicit content by as much as 70 percent. These users will now see how deepfakes are affecting society instead of seeing non-consensual fake images and videos.
Additionally, if a website has a high volume of takedowns for explicit deepfakes, Google will take this as a signal that it is not a high-quality site and will demote it. Moving forward, the tech giant is working on distinguishing explicit content that is consensual, such as a scene from a movie, from explicit deepfakes.
