(This article is authored by Alar)

A month ago, a shocking video of actor Rashmika Mandana went viral on social media. The video showed a woman who looked like the actress wearing a black swimsuit and entering a lift. But there was a catch: the video was not real. It was a deepfake, a synthetic media created by using artificial intelligence (AI) to manipulate the face and voice of a person.

The video sparked outrage and concern among the fans and the public, who questioned the ethics and legality of such content. The actress herself condemned the video and urged the authorities to take action against the perpetrators. The Delhi Police registered a case and launched a hunt for the culprits.

However, the investigation soon hit a roadblock after they nabbed a gang. The police found out that the video was uploaded by four suspects using a fake identity and a VPN, making it hard to trace their location and identity. The police also learned that the four suspects were not the creators of the video, but only the uploaders. The main conspirator, who used AI to generate the deepfake, was still at large.

The police sought the help of the cyber experts and the social media platforms to track down the mastermind. They also sent a letter to Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, asking for the details of the deleted account that posted the video. However, Meta replied that they could not provide any information, as the account is deleted.

The police also issued notices to all the major social media platforms, asking them to take steps to identify and remove deepfake content. The police said that deepfake was a big issue for everyone and that the platforms should be more aggressive in tackling it. The platforms responded by saying that they were taking action and that they had policies and tools to detect and remove such content.

The challenge for the authorities and the platforms is to find a balance between protecting the privacy and freedom of expression of the users and preventing the abuse and misuse of deepfake technology. The challenge for the public is to be aware and vigilant of the potential dangers and risks of deepfake and to verify the authenticity and source of the videos they see online.