As the GOP primary in South Carolina approaches, political campaigns are strategizing on how to combat the growing threat of deep fakes. Deep fakes, which involve the use of artificial intelligence to create realistic but fabricated audio and video content, have already made an impact in the political arena. During the New Hampshire primary, a deep fake of President Biden's voice was used in a robocall. In response to the rising concern, the Biden administration is conducting drills with national security leaders to develop strategies for countering misinformation.
A Chicago mayoral candidate, Paul Vallis, became a victim of a deep fake attack during his closely contested campaign. The AI-generated deep fake audio portrayed Vallis as not being Democrat enough for the Democratic Party, as it depicted him as excessively pro-police. Vallis, who lost the election by a mere four points, acknowledged the damaging impact of the deep fake. He expressed frustration at the portrayal of him as a conservative Republican, which did not align with his actual political stance.
