Artificial Intelligence: Deepfakes Raise Fraud Risk In Africa

By Semafor Africa

Photos: Creative Commons\YouTube Screenshots

Generative artificial intelligence was behind more than a third of new biometric fraud cases in Africa last year, a report found, with a surge in deepfakes threatening the data of millions of consumers whose details are held on insecure systems.

Deepfake videos used to impersonate people increased sevenfold in the second half of 2024, according to the Lagos-based digital identity verification startup Smile ID, which vets customer identities for hundreds of businesses on the continent, including Uber.

Smile ID found document forgery remains a sizable aspect of identity fraud, especially in East Africa. But generative AI has “radically” increased manipulation opportunities, posing fresh challenges for security and anti-money laundering enforcement, chief executive Mark Straub told Semafor.

Read on for the risks generative AI is posing to businesses on the continent. →