On Wednesday, 27 March, the Federal Police (PF) carried out a search and seizure warrant against a person suspected of pretending to be the Justice and Public Security Minister Ricardo Lewandowski, using a false profile on social media.
This Content Is Only For Subscribers
To unlock this content, subscribe to INTERLIRA Reports.
The suspect is being investigated for the crime of false identity. According to the Federal Police, the investigations will continue to clarify the motivation of the person under investigation in creating a false profile of the minister.
Instagram profile
According to investigations, the suspect had created a profile in the name of the Minister of Justice and Public Security, Ricardo Lewandowski, on Instagram, without authorization. Furthermore, the PF will also investigate whether other public authorities were victims of this crime.
Deep fake
Criminals have been using artificial intelligence (AI) to create a “clone” of a person and try to scam people using their image. This content is produced using software that uses AI to recreate people’s voices, change faces in videos, and synchronize lip movements and expressions.
Electronic fraud has grown
Scams requiring bank transfers via cell phone applications or in the virtual environment fall into the category of electronic fraud.
Data from the Brazilian Yearbook of Public Security 2023 shows that in 2022, 200,322 cases of fraud were recorded electronically, a number 65% higher than that recorded in 2021, when this number was 120,470.
The states with the most cases were Santa Catarina (64,230), Minas Gerais (35,749), Distrito Federal (15,580) and Espirito Santo (15,277).
Use of AI in scams
With the advancement of technology and AI, it is increasingly common for software to appear that can reproduce the image of a person with their voice, creating complete sentences and even imitating speech mannerisms and accents.
To create this, you just need to have access to a few seconds of an image or the person’s voice — such as, for example, a video posted on social media or even an audio sent on messaging apps.
Analysis:
The recent incident involving the creation of a false profile of the Minister of Justice and Public Security, Ricardo Lewandowski, on social media highlights a growing concern about the use of artificial intelligence (AI) technologies for illicit activities, such as electronic scams and false identities.
Anyone can exploit the ease of access to AI technologies to create fake content, including videos and social media profiles. The possibility to manipulate audio, video, and images with relative precision makes it increasingly difficult to distinguish between what is genuine and what is fabricated.
