Hundreds of ads featuring a deep faked Rishi Sunak went up on Facebook - and it's only going to get worse

News
By published

The deep fakes promoted investments in an Elon Musk stock market app scam

Rishi Sunak
(Image credit: Sean Aidan Calderbank/Shutterstock)

Adverts featuring a deep faked likeness to UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak have appeared across Facebook, raising fears of future scams or threats as a possible election nears.

Some of the adverts show the Prime Minister announcing government investment in a new stock market app launched by Elon Musk.

The adverts then link through to a fake BBC News page promoting investment opportunities in this new app - and of course, it's a scam.

Latest Videos From

2024, the year of the deep fake?

Recent research conducted by Fenimore Harper showed that in a one month period between December 8 2023 and January 8 2024, the funding poured into promoting these adverts on Facebook amounted to $16,500. 

The source of funding for the adverts originated in countries such as Turkey, Malaysia, the Phillipines and the United States.

The research found that 143 different adverts using Rishi Sunaks deep fake likeness were shown to over 400,000 people on Facebook. Luckily, of this 400,000, the adverts were shown to “less than 0.5 percent of UK users”, according to a spokesperson speaking to The Guardian.

While it seems that the primary incentive for these adverts was monetary gain, it is expected that Prime Minister Sunak will call a general election this year. That means you can expect to see many more deep fakes from key political figures spouting misinformation in attempts by hacktivists and state-sponsored groups to influence voting behavior and the overall outcome of the election.

You should also expect to see a gradual increase in deep-fakes and other misinformation/disinformation in the run up to the US presidential election, as Russia and China look to try and sow divide and mistrust between Democrats and Republicans.

Via Engadget

More from TechRadar Pro

Benedict Collins
Benedict Collins
Senior Writer, Security

Benedict is a Senior Security Writer at TechRadar Pro, where he has specialized in covering the intersection of geopolitics, cyber-warfare, and business security.

Benedict provides detailed analysis on state-sponsored threat actors, APT groups, and the protection of critical national infrastructure, with his reporting bridging the gap between technical threat intelligence and B2B security strategy.

Benedict holds an MA (Distinction) in Security, Intelligence, and Diplomacy from the University of Buckingham Centre for Security and Intelligence Studies (BUCSIS), with his specialization providing him with a robust academic framework for deconstructing complex international conflicts and intelligence operations, and the ability to translate intricate security data into actionable insights.