Watch out for attacks from virtual people with phantom lives
Computer-generated images of a non-existent baseball player, cat & car. Images: This X Does not Exist
BY KERRY TOMLINSON, AMPERE NEWS
August 10, 2022
Attackers can fake a face. But now it's easier and easier for them to fake an entire personality with the push of a few buttons.
They can use artificial intelligence, like a computer on steroids, to generate fake lives that feel real. A baseball player who never existed. A computer-generated car. Emails written by the computer mind.
These artificial creations are called deepfakes, a combination of 'deep learning' and 'fakes,' and attackers will likely use these simulated lives to target all of us for theft, spying and sabotage.
Watch here:
Video about attacks by virtual people
Beyond Faces
Sometimes being a fake person feels empty. But now that computer-generated fake person can have a house, created by artificial intelligence as well. Add a cat, a car, and even a horse, all computer generated, too.
Artificial intelligence, or AI, can generate a fake resume for them --- like Pascale York, a project manager and sales associate in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, with a long work history --- and a fake company as well. In this case, the firm 'Cedicious' looks real, with a team of co-workers and a list of testimonials, but was generated in less than a second.
To top it off, you can ask the computer mind to invent a moderately entertaining song to keep 'Pascale' entertained. Select a sad rap about Choco Tacos, the popular but freshly discontinued ice cream treat:
You cannot see the thing or know the Choco
In the taco chain, baby
You see Choco
No matter what, no matter what
Where will it all end?
The answer: it probably won't. And the next step may be for this kind of person to reach out to you with customized messages to lure you in.
"We're looking at the ability to create virtual people," said Ben Murdoch, machine learning engineer with security company ArmorBlox.
Murdoch researches these kinds of generators to try to prevent future attacks. He directs the generators to make simulated personalities who can write tailor-made messages based on your likes and dislikes.
"Someone would look at that and say, 'Oh, wow, this sounds like a really cool person, you probably want to talk to them,'" Murdoch said in an interview with Ampere News at the 2022 RSA cybersecurity conference. "And it would also give you reasons, legitimate reasons in the context of this fake human, to click on a phishing [fake email] link, for example, or to open a corrupted PDF."
Virtual Dave
Virtual Dave, for example, can write you any number of attack emails designed to draw you in.
In one email targeting Murdoch himself, the computer says:
Hey Ben:
I'm Dave and I'm working on a startup that I think you might be interested in. We're using natural language processing to help people communicate better. I was wondering if I could get your help with our project, and if I could also get your number so we could talk about it.
Thanks, Dave
"It's made me rethink the way that I use email", Murdoch said. "It's made me rethink the way that I interact with strangers on the Internet. Because I know that these generative attacks are coming. And I don't know when I'm going to get one."
Murdoch even created a virtual version of himself, who writes like him and is interested in the same things.
"If I told you that I wrote this email, or that my bot wrote this email for you, I don't think you'd be able to tell the difference," he said.
Cheaper Attacks
The key is cost. Attackers can spend time and money sitting at the keyboard, tricking you in real time, or they can automate their attacks with generators, personalizing them for everyone in your family or your company.
"A generator is always on," Murdoch said. "What do you do when an attacker is always online, 24/7?"
You've likely already seen computer-generated people speaking for real businesses and possibly blogs written by a computer, not a person, on real company sites.
The lines blur. Attackers can take advantage.
"We're looking at the ability to generate fake companies, fake blogs, fake products, fake people," he said. "Even if you call that company, a bot could answer the phone with a fake human voice and sell you on their product."
Already Faking It
The FBI says criminals are already using deepfakery, like applying for remote work jobs and faking their video job interviews.
They're pretending to be CEOs for virtual meetings with employees and spying on you or manipulating you with false information. They’re connecting with you on LinkedIn.
What do we do now that computers can bring fake people to life, creating realistic fake worlds in just a few minutes?
---Slow down your reaction time by taking more time to review a message or social media profile before you respond.
---Find ways to verify messages and people instead of relying on what they show you.
---Shift your thinking to look out for these attacks, since they may be on the horizon and soon in your life.
Wrapping it up
In the words of this computer-generated Choco Taco rap song:
They always seem so good, but so fake
When I see them together
Friends will become taco for thought
A real life, not a fake one
There are positive sides to this technology, Murdoch said. For example, instead of spending your time writing, you can have machines do it for you so you can do something else productive. But be prepared for attackers to abuse this tech.
