AI Doppelgangers: The New Age Threat to Your Digital Identity

Imagine having a doppelganger – an imposter lurking in the shadows, studying your voice, imitating your mannerisms, and adopting your personality.

Not long ago, this scenario might have been dismissed as the plot of a poorly constructed B-grade science fiction movie.

However, that scenario has shifted from retro fantasy to modern reality.

With this new era settling in, you may have a digital imposter lurking in the shadows with the rise in AI-generated look-alikes. Powered by Artificial Intelligence, AI Doppelgangers hyper-realistically engage in tangible and realistic conversations.

AI Dopplegagers Examples

Google Assistant and Siri are popular examples of using natural voice and AI to interact with users. However, there are times when few companies take it a step further.

On 14 March 2021, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg revealed his personal AI Jarvis (inspired by Jarvis in Iron Man), voiced by Hollywood actor Morgan Freeman.

However, there are instances where celebrity likenesses are used without any consent.

Recently, OpenAI unveiled its “Sky” AI personal assistant voice, eerily similar to the popular Hollywood actress Scarlett Johansson. While the company has denied any similarity, the event highlights the ethical and copyright issues surrounding the AI Doppelgangers.

Underlying Issue

Unfortunately, tackling the AI Doppelgangers issue for normal individuals is even more difficult, as companies use individual raw datasets to analyze and train their AI models.

The question arises did you give explicit consent to use your data?

AI Image generators are supposed to generate brand-new images. However, the style and likeness of the produced image are often based on the trained data.

Greg Rutkowski, a prominent digital artist known for his unique style, faces a compelling issue as AI-generated tools replicate his artwork. This situation raises crucial questions about who holds the rights to the replicated pieces.

The legal and ethical implications regarding originality, control, and ownership need to be carefully examined, as do the potential impacts on the credibility and authenticity of information. Addressing these issues with the utmost priority is paramount.

Also, various steps can be undertaken to address the challenges of AI doppelgangers.

Revamping and evolving legal frameworks that directly address AI’s implications should be of the utmost importance.

The frameworks must properly define and regulate the use of digital images, giving original authors control over their digital identities. More importantly, there is a need for regulatory guidelines on consent and ownership of digital identities, properties, and trademarks, adhering to international standards.

These frameworks must encapsulate consent, control, and intellectual property while addressing the potential impact of misuse and deception. More importantly, these frameworks should be flexible enough to address future challenges in AI Doppelgangers.

Protecting Against AI Doppelgangers

You have the right to make those informed decisions about your data. Additionally, there are steps you can take to safeguard digital identities against unauthorized AI Doppelgangers.

Here are a few steps you can take to protect yourself.

Privacy Setting and Monitoring: Adjust privacy settings to prevent unauthorized access to your sensitive information. And, ensure regular monitoring to identify any gaps in maintaining privacy.

Limited Data Sharing: Limit personal data sharing to untrustworthy websites and apps online. Grand only appropriate permission to relevant apps and websites, while regularly auditing those permissions.

Public Awareness: Raise public awareness in the community about the risks and misuse of AI Doppelgangers, and the succeeding steps to protect against it.