Black Box: the hunt for ClothOff – the deepfake porn app
Mar 11, 2024
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Journalist investigates deepfake porn app ClothOff, unveils mysterious AI company behind it. Exploration of the ethical implications, legal actions, and personal tragedies caused by deepfakes. Intriguing characters, connections, and denials revealed in a gripping investigation into the dark world of deepfakes.
AI blurring fact from fiction poses challenge for police and lawmakers.
Deepfake incidents cause psychological trauma and societal repercussions, requiring awareness and legal action.
Deep dives
Chasing the Creators of a Controversial Deepfake App
In the podcast episode, the team dives into the world of deepfake technology, focusing on an app called Clothoff that generates explicit deepfake images of women and girls. The hosts embark on a mission to uncover the individuals behind the app, facing challenges in tracking them down due to intricate disguises. The narrative unfolds with encounters in hidden basements and faceless offices, revealing the ominous impact of the AI-powered app on unsuspecting targets. The podcast delves into the legal complexities and ethical dilemmas surrounding the misuse of AI technology for creating deepfake content, shedding light on the insidious nature of such tools.
Disturbing Realities of Deepfake Technology
The episode exposes the distressing consequences of deepfake incidents, exemplified through a poignant story narrated by Miriam Aladeib. Her daughter becomes a victim of Clothoff's deepfake images, causing immense psychological trauma and societal repercussions. The narrative captures the devastating effects on the girls targeted by the exploitative app, leading to fear, shame, and emotional distress. Miriam's advocacy against such malicious acts echoes a larger concern about the proliferation of deepfake content and its detrimental impact on individuals' lives, urging for awareness and legal action to combat this digital threat.
Unraveling the Enigmatic Web of Clothoff's Operations
As the investigation progresses, the team uncovers a sophisticated network associated with Clothoff, spanning across international borders and involving intricate financial and operational setups. The revelation of interconnected identities like Al and Dasha, purportedly linked to the app, adds layers of mystery and intrigue. By delving into Telegram channels, website registrations, and virtual office disguises, a web of deceit and concealment surrounding Clothoff's origins and key players emerges, highlighting the elusive nature of those responsible for perpetuating harmful deepfake practices.
Confronting the Reality of Deepfake Proliferation and Legal Responses
The episode concludes with a reflection on the escalating trend of deepfake technologies and their potential societal impacts, extending beyond personal violations to political manipulation and misinformation. Legal developments, such as the Online Safety Act in the UK and discussions in the US Congress, underscore the urgent need to address the growing threat posed by deepfake content. By unraveling the complex narrative of Clothoff and its ramifications, the podcast illuminates the pressing challenges of combating digital deception in an era where truth and authenticity are increasingly at risk.
For the past six months, the Guardian journalist Michael Safi has been trying to find out who is behind an AI company that creates deepfakes. Deepfakes that are causing havoc around the world, with police and lawmakers baffled about how to deal with them. And in trying to answer one question, he has been left with a bigger one: is AI going to make it impossible to sort fact from fiction? Subscribe to Black Box, a new Guardian audio series on artificial intelligence, for all the remaining episodes. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/infocus
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