Deepfakes on the Internet - How to Identify Them and How to Avoid Being Manipulated

What Is a Deepfake

A deepfake is synthetic media created using machine learning to imitate a real person’s appearance, voice, or behavior.

Deepfakes can be:

• video
• audio
• images
• combined audio and video
• real content edited in misleading ways

They are usually built using publicly available data such as videos, interviews, social media posts, or recordings.

You do not need sophisticated access to create them anymore. Many tools are cheap, automated, and easy to use.

Why Deepfakes Are Effective

Deepfakes succeed because humans are wired to trust:

• familiar faces
• known voices
• emotional cues
• perceived authority

Attackers exploit this by creating content that:

• feels urgent
• references real events
• uses believable context
• targets moments of distraction or stress

Most victims do not fall for deepfakes because they are careless.
They fall for them because the content matches expectations.

Common Ways Deepfakes Are Used Today

Deepfakes are rarely used alone. They are part of broader attacks.

Common scenarios include:

• executives appearing to approve payments
• colleagues requesting urgent actions
• public figures endorsing scams
• fake news clips shared out of context
• voice calls impersonating IT or support staff

In many cases, the deepfake only needs to convince you for a few seconds.

How to Identify Deepfakes

There is no single indicator. Detection relies on combining multiple signals.

Look for Context Before Content

Ask basic questions:

• Where did this come from?
• Who is sharing it?
• Why am I seeing it now?
• What reaction is it trying to trigger?

Deepfakes often appear in emotionally charged or urgent situations.

Watch for Visual Inconsistencies

Common signs include:

• unnatural facial movements
• inconsistent blinking
• odd mouth movements
• lighting that does not match the environment
• blurred edges around faces
• unnatural head or body motion

These signs are subtle and improving, but they still exist.

Listen Carefully to Audio

Audio deepfakes often reveal themselves through:

• unnatural pauses
• odd pacing
• lack of emotional variation
• pronunciation inconsistencies
• robotic or flattened tone

If something feels off, trust that instinct.

Check for Behavioral Mismatch

Ask yourself:

• Does this person usually communicate this way?
• Would they really ask this over this channel?
• Is the request aligned with normal process?

Many deepfakes fail on behavior, not realism.

Verify Through Independent Channels

Never rely on a single source.

If something matters:

• verify through another platform
• contact the person directly using known contact details
• confirm through official channels

Verification breaks most deepfake attacks.

Why Detection Alone Is Not Enough

Even trained people get fooled.

Deepfakes exploit:

• cognitive overload
• authority bias
• emotional pressure
• time constraints

Relying on perfect detection is unrealistic.

The goal is risk reduction, not perfect identification.

How to Avoid Being Manipulated by Deepfakes

Slow Down Decision Making

Urgency is the attacker’s best weapon.

Pause before:

• sending money
• sharing credentials
• approving access
• forwarding content

Deepfake attacks lose power when urgency is removed.

Reduce Public Exposure

The more data attackers have, the easier deepfakes become.

Limit:

• public videos
• voice recordings
• oversharing personal details
• unnecessary public appearances online

This is especially important for executives and public-facing roles.

Use Process Over Trust

Organizations should rely on:

• defined approval processes
• multi-person verification
• clear escalation paths

No single video or voice should override process.

Educate, Not Just Warn

Training should explain:

• how deepfakes are created
• what they look like
• how they are used in attacks
• why people fall for them

Fear-based training backfires. Understanding builds resilience.

Treat Media as Potentially Manipulated

This does not mean distrust everything.

It means:

• question before acting
• verify before sharing
• separate emotion from decision

Critical thinking is the strongest defense.

The Role of Technology

Technical detection tools exist, but they are not foolproof.

They should be used to:

• support investigations
• flag anomalies
• assist analysts

They should not replace human judgment or verification processes.

Why This Is a Security Maturity Issue

Deepfakes expose a core truth.

Security is no longer just about systems.
It is about perception, trust, and human behavior.

Organizations that mature:

• design processes assuming deception
• verify identity beyond appearance
• reduce reliance on authority signals
• train people to question safely

Those that do not will keep reacting to incidents after damage is done.

So What

Deepfakes are not a future threat. They are already here.

You do not need to spot every fake to stay safe.
You need to slow down, verify, and rely on process instead of trust.

The internet is no longer a place where seeing is believing.

Security in this environment is not about certainty.
It is about skepticism, verification, and resilience.