Google Search Adjusts Algorithm to Combat Deepfake Content, Especially Pornographic Deepfakes

Over the past few years, deepfake technology has rapidly gained popularity. This technology allows malevolent actors to create explicit images or videos of individuals without their consent, as seen in numerous cases, including the widespread dissemination of nude photos of Scarlett Johansson on certain forums.

Moreover, deepfakes have been used to replace faces in adult films, where individuals swap the faces of their favorite celebrities or characters onto the bodies of adult film stars. Sometimes, the results are disturbingly realistic.

Today, Google has announced an update to its algorithm to aggressively tackle deepfake content. This includes filtering out deepfake content from search results and providing a reporting system for victims to quickly contact Google to remove related content.

Google aims to strengthen its existing reporting system against blatant deepfakes by creating a simpler process. This new method offers affected users a way to have deepfake content removed on a large scale.

Additionally, through the update of its search algorithm, Google will automatically filter and demote deepfake content. A specialized algorithm will monitor the ranking of deepfake content in Google Search to ensure it does not rise in visibility or be seen by other users.

Whether it's demoting content through its algorithm or providing a large-scale removal feature, these measures do not completely erase the content since it is not hosted on Google's platform. However, after these steps are taken by users and Google, it becomes challenging to find this content through Google Search, significantly reducing the likelihood of encountering these deepfakes.

Google states that it has already implemented these new policies, leading to a 70% reduction in search queries for such content. Nonetheless, completely solving this issue is incredibly challenging, so the next steps involve Google continuing to refine and optimize its algorithm.