DNSC warns that deepfake videos of high-profile people appearing to broker investment opportunities are back

A series of aggressive cyber-attacks, scam type where they use including deepfake videos were seen o social media platforms, immediately after the presidential elections, informs the National Directorate for Cyber Security (DNSC).'(...) immediately after the elections we noticed a rather aggressive resurgence on social media platforms of fake investment scams, those scams that Meta is inspired to call CELEBaits, because they use deepfake videos, usually featuring well-known people who seem to spin these 'investment opportunities' as a programme that can make you rich overnight. For several days now, we have been identifying such initiatives with both President Nicusor Dan and former interim President Ilie Bolojan on Meta platforms, but also on Youtube (Google) etc.', the Directory emphasises. According to the quoted source, one of the online fraud attempts is connected to false investments where the hackers use the image of celebrity in Romania and the video clips are spread usually through posts or advertisements on social media.   'A fake investment platform, created by online criminals with the aim of stealing money from unsuspecting users, is using deepfake technology to generate videos with an altered message. (...) The criminals make use of publicly available videos of Romanian politicians (president, prime minister, etc.), whose initial message is then altered using artificial intelligence. More specifically, after processing these videos using deepfake, the people in the videos appear to be promoting an investment programme that would bring potential investors large profits. Using this method, online criminals are trying to lure potential victims into providing sensitive data or investing money in non-existent offers. All this information and money ends up in the hands of the attackers. This is a digital scam campaign that combines social engineering with deepfake technology, misusing the image of real people who are popular with the general public in Romania', DNSC said on its official Facebook, LinkedIn and Instagram pages.   The specialists in cyber security announced the way in which an internet user may recognize a videoclip made with deepfake technology: lip movement is not synchronized with the voice, facial expressions are rigid or non-natural, the background seems artificial or animated, eyes who do not blink naturally or ‘empty’ looks.In the context of the increase in these types of attacks, the DNSC has produced a guide to recognising deepfake content, which is available on the DNSC website.