Commonwealth Club Event: "How to Spot Deepfakes & Fight AI-Powered Fraud"

Join the Commonwealth Club of California on Wednesday, Aug. 13, 2025 to hear UC Berkeley’s Hany Farid discuss "How to Spot Deepfakes and Fight AI-Powered Fraud."

HOW TO WATCH:
This event is $10 for online tickets, and you must register at the link below, at which point you'll be emailed a link to the online event - https://commonwealthclub.my.salesforce-sites.com/ticket/#/instances/a0FVb000005xAuvMAE

NOTE: This event is free for members of the Commonwealth Club of California. Membership costs just $10/month and you can cancel at any time. To become a member, go to: https://www.commonwealthclub.org/membership

EVENT DESCRIPTION:
Deepfakes—AI-altered images, video, or audio, often used to impersonate real people—have become commonplace in recent years. In 2023, a Hong Kong employee of a multinational company transferred $25 million to fraudsters’ bank accounts after they used the technology to pose as the company’s chief financial officer on a video call. And during Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, a fake video of President Zelenskyy surfaced, showing him urging Ukrainian soldiers to surrender. Meanwhile, phony but convincing videos of public figures, from the Pope to Tom Cruise, are flooding the internet.

President Trump signed legislation in May aimed at fighting some of the worst abuses, but critics say it is too vague and could be used to justify censorship. UC Berkeley professor Hany Farid, one of the world’s leading experts on digitally manipulated images, joins us to talk about the threat of deepfakes... and how AI is now being used to detect them.

ABOUT THE SPEAKERS:

• Hany Farid is a Professor at the UC Berkeley’s Schools of Information and Electrical Engineering and Computer Sciences, as well as Cofounder & Chief Science Officer of GetReal Security which develops techniques to detect manipulated media.
• Jacob Ward, the moderator, is a tech journalist and founder of The Rip Current.

ABOUT THE EVENT HOST:
The Commonwealth Club of California is the nation's oldest and largest public affairs forum. Every year, they present more than 450 forums on topics ranging across politics, culture, society and the economy. Their stated mission is to be the leading national forum open to all for the impartial discussion of public issues important to the membership, community and nation. To learn more, go to: https://www.commonwealthclub.org/who-we-are
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