Identity theft of celebrities and scams: Meta files complaint for deepfakes in Brazil and China

Meta, the American tech giant (Facebook, Instagram), has announced that it is filing a lawsuit against suspected scammers in Brazil and China who have been using hyper-realistic or deepfake montages with the image of celebrities to promote products on its platforms. Artificial intelligence (AI) allows criminals to create fake content replicating the voice and image of personalities to further their online scam projects.

In a statement, Meta announced that it is suing “four dishonest advertisers who have impersonated celebrities and well-known brands to deceive and defraud people.” In Brazil, Meta is suing two companies and four individuals, many of whom are accused of “a fraud operation that used deepfakes of a famous doctor to advertise health products without regulatory authorization.”

Brazilian oncologist Drauzio Varella, one of the personalities whose image was used, deemed this procedure insufficient, stating it is “a drop in the ocean” regarding fraud in public health.

In China, Meta is also suing a company for distributing “advertisements” using the image of celebrities to target internet users in the United States and Japan, encouraging them to “join so-called investment groups.”

Furthermore, Meta has stated that it is taking legal action against a Vietnamese company for the publication of fraudulent advertisements for luxury bags from the French brand Longchamp.