Chinese propaganda network used AI-generated faces on Facebook
Facebook removed two networks of fake accounts spreading propaganda, one originating from China and one from the Philippines. The Chinese network used AI-generated faces created through Generative Adversarial Networks (GANs) to create fake profiles and evade detection. The campaign targeted the US election and Southeast Asia, pushing pro-China content. Facebook took down the accounts and published a report with Graphika.
- Company involved
- Chinese propaganda network (Fujian province)
- AI system involved
- GANs (Generative Adversarial Networks)
10 source articles · read the reporting →
DiveFace face-recognition dataset reuses Flickr photos despite licence restrictions
DiveFace is a face-recognition dataset published in 2019 with 139,677 images of about 24,000 people. The authors say the images came from Flickr via the MegaFace and YFCC100M datasets and were automatically labelled by gender and ethnicity. Exposing.ai found that many of the photos carry Creative Commons licences which prohibit derivative use, suggesting the dataset may have been assembled without proper permission. The dataset remains available from the authors' GitHub page.
- AI system involved
- DiveFace
3 source articles · read the reporting →
Zao deepfake app sparks privacy and fraud fears in China
The Zao face-swapping app, developed by Momo, sparked privacy and fraud fears after its launch in China on 29 August 2019. The app's terms and conditions initially gave the developer permanent rights to use users' images, which experts said broke Chinese law. Momo subsequently apologized and deleted the controversial clause. Alipay assured users that deepfakes could not bypass its facial recognition payment system.
- Company involved
- Momo
- AI system involved
- Zao
10 source articles · read the reporting →
FindFace facial recognition app used to out sex workers in Russia
The FindFace facial recognition app is being used by users of the Russian website Dvach to identify porn actresses and sex workers from images and match them to their VKontakte accounts. The users then spam the victims' families and friends with the information, aiming to out them. Several victims complained to FindFace, but the founder stated there was no way to prevent the misuse.
- Company involved
- FindFace
- AI system involved
- FindFace
7 source articles · read the reporting →
Deepfake creator Xiao swaps Yang Mi's face onto Athena Chu's body
A Chinese creator named Xiao used deepfake technology to superimpose actress Yang Mi's face onto Athena Chu's body in videos from a 1994 TV series. The videos went viral on Bilibili and Weibo, raising concerns about privacy and potential harassment. Xiao stated he made the videos to educate the public about deepfakes. The videos were later deleted.
10 source articles · read the reporting →
Faces of the Riot publishes extracted faces from Parler Capitol riot videos
The website Faces of the Riot used open source facial recognition software to extract and publish over 6,000 faces from Parler videos of the January 6 Capitol riot. The creator, an anonymous college student, aimed to help identify participants in the insurrection. The site has been criticised for privacy violations and potential vigilante misuse. The creator says they are working to remove non-rioter faces.
- Company involved
- Faces of the Riot
- AI system involved
- Faces of the Riot
8 source articles · read the reporting →
Qoves facial assessment tool ranks journalist's attractiveness and suggests procedures
Tate Ryan-Mosley, a journalist at MIT Technology Review, used Qoves Studio's AI facial assessment tool, which automatically scored her face and listed perceived flaws such as smile lines and under-eye bags. The tool recommended skin-care products and paid surgical consultation reports. She also tried Megvii's Face++ beauty-scoring system, which gave her two percentage attractiveness scores. The article raises concerns that such algorithms are inaccurate, biased and not transparently used by social media platforms.
- Company involved
- Qoves Studio
- AI system involved
- Facial Assessment Tool
9 source articles · read the reporting →
Retorio AI personality test swayed by candidate appearance in BR experiment
Bayerischer Rundfunk journalists conducted experiments with Retorio's AI video interview analysis tool. The AI, which assesses personality traits from short videos, produced different scores when the same actress changed her appearance (glasses, headscarf, wig) or the video background and lighting were altered. The start-up Retorio acknowledged that the AI considers external image, similar to a human interviewer. Experts warned that such software could perpetuate stereotypes and unfairly affect job candidates.
- AI system involved
- Retorio AI
10 source articles · read the reporting →
Huawei and Megvii tested Uyghur alarm facial recognition system
Huawei and Megvii conducted an interoperability test in 2018 that verified a 'Uyghur alarm' function in Megvii's facial recognition system, according to a confidential report found by IPVM. The system could identify Uyghur minorities and alert police. Huawei denied real-world application and deleted the report after IPVM inquired. Megvii denied targeting ethnic groups. The test report was publicly accessible on Huawei's European website.
- Company involved
- Huawei
- AI system involved
- Megvii Dynamic Face Recognition
10 source articles · read the reporting →
AI deepfake fraud dupes man into transferring $612,000
A man surnamed Guo, a legal representative of a technology company in Fuzhou, received a video call from someone impersonating his friend using AI to mimic the friend's face and voice. The fake friend asked Guo to transfer 4.3 million yuan to a bank account, claiming it was for a bid. Guo transferred the money and later discovered the fraud when he contacted his real friend. Police stopped part of the transfer and are investigating.
10 source articles · read the reporting →
FTC settles with IntelliVision over deceptive facial recognition claims
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) took action against IntelliVision Technologies Corp. for making false, misleading, or unsubstantiated claims about its AI-powered facial recognition software. The company allegedly claimed its software had one of the highest accuracy rates on the market and was free of gender or racial bias, without supporting evidence. The FTC also alleged that IntelliVision did not train its software on millions of faces as claimed, but on images of approximately 100,000 individuals. Under a proposed consent order, IntelliVision is prohibited from making such misrepresentations without competent and reliable testing.
- Company involved
- IntelliVision Technologies Corp.
- AI system involved
- IntelliVision facial recognition software
9 source articles · read the reporting →
Face recognition bypass used to register shell companies for tax fraud in Shanghai
In a major tax fraud case in Shanghai, criminals used face recognition cracking techniques to register shell companies on government platforms. They purchased high-resolution photos and used apps to create fake videos, then used modified phones to bypass face recognition authentication. The scheme resulted in fraudulent invoices totaling over 500 million yuan. The case was prosecuted by the Shanghai procuratorate.
7 source articles · read the reporting →
Deep-Live-Cam enables real-time face swapping, raising fraud concerns
A software package called Deep-Live-Cam has gone viral for enabling real-time face swapping on webcams using a single photo. The tool, which is free and open source, allows anyone to impersonate another person's appearance in a video chat, raising concerns about remote deception and fraud. The article notes that similar technology has been used in a $25 million heist in Hong Kong and in audio deepfake scams.
- AI system involved
- Deep-Live-Cam
7 source articles · read the reporting →
New Jersey court rules police must disclose facial recognition algorithms used to identify defendant
Francisco Arteaga was charged with armed robbery after a facial recognition search by the New York Police Department identified him as a possible match. The New Jersey police used this match to obtain witness identifications. Arteaga requested information about the facial recognition software, including its source code and error rate, but the trial court denied his request. The New Jersey appellate court ruled that the prosecution must disclose the algorithms, citing due process and the Brady rule.
- Company involved
- New Jersey Police
7 source articles · read the reporting →
ElevenLabs voice cloning tool used to create deepfake celebrity audio clips
Speech AI startup ElevenLabs launched a beta voice cloning tool. Within days, users on 4chan posted deepfake audio clips featuring voices resembling celebrities like Emma Watson reading offensive material. ElevenLabs acknowledged the misuse and said it is considering additional safeguards.
- Company involved
- ElevenLabs
- AI system involved
- ElevenLabs platform
10 source articles · read the reporting →
Short drama company YaoKe Media signs AI actors, sparking backlash over uncanny valley and likeness rights
On March 18, 2026, Chinese short drama company YaoKe Media announced the signing of two AI digital actors, Qin Lingyue and Lin Xiyan, and the production of an AI drama 'Qinling'. The AI actors, which resemble real celebrities like Zhao Jinmai, prompted netizens to call for rights protection on behalf of the real actors. Critics also complained about the 'uncanny valley' effect, with the term 'AI actor fake human feeling' trending on Weibo. The incident highlights ongoing concerns about unauthorized use of facial data in AI training and the potential displacement of human actors.
- Company involved
- 耀客传媒 (YaoKe Media)
- AI system involved
- 秦凌岳, 林汐颜 (AI actors) and AI drama 《秦岭》
5 source articles · read the reporting →
Woman discovers past photos via facial recognition search
A woman scanned her face on a facial recognition search engine and discovered old photographs from a traumatic period in her past that she believed were forgotten. The incident highlights privacy risks of facial recognition technology.
6 source articles · read the reporting →
City analyst Michael Hewson cloned in AI deepfake scam on social media
A deepfake video using AI to impersonate City analyst Michael Hewson circulated on Facebook and Instagram, directing users to a WhatsApp group promising undervalued investments. The scam used fear-of-missing-out tactics to lure victims. Hewson publicly disavowed the video and reported it to Meta, expressing anger.
- Company involved
- Meta
4 source articles · read the reporting →
PimEyes facial recognition used to unmask porn actors and Facebook friends
A man used the facial recognition site PimEyes to identify porn actors and women from his Facebook friends by uploading their photos and finding matching images online. The system had no controls to prevent searching for others without consent. The article alleges that this invasion of privacy could lead to discrimination and harassment, and that PimEyes offered a paid service to remove photos but did not prevent the searches.
- Company involved
- PimEyes
- AI system involved
- PimEyes
3 source articles · read the reporting →
N-Tech.lab's FindFace used to identify St Petersburg metro passengers without consent
Egor Tsvetkov photographed passengers on the St Petersburg metro without their permission and used N-Tech.lab's facial recognition service FindFace to match their faces to public Vkontakte profiles. He published the results in an art project called 'Your Face is Big Data', saying he wanted to show how 'digital narcissism' can lead to stalking. Privacy advocates said the project was ethically problematic because the subjects had not consented and their identities were exposed. FindFace had been launched by N-Tech.lab in February 2016.
- Company involved
- N-Tech.lab
- AI system involved
- FindFace
8 source articles · read the reporting →
OpenAI's Sora video generator leaked by group in protest
A group calling itself 'Sora PR Puppets' leaked access to OpenAI's Sora video generator by publishing a front end on Hugging Face using authentication tokens from an early access program. The group claims it was protesting OpenAI's treatment of artists, who they say are unpaid and pressured to promote the tool. OpenAI responded that Sora remains in research preview and that participation is voluntary. The leak was shut down after a few hours.
- Company involved
- OpenAI
- AI system involved
- Sora
5 source articles · read the reporting →
OnlyFake site uses neural networks to generate fake IDs, bypasses OKX verification
An underground website called OnlyFake uses neural networks to generate realistic photos of fake IDs for $15. The journalist tested the service and obtained a convincing California driver's license. They then used another fake ID to successfully bypass the identity verification process on OKX, a cryptocurrency exchange. The article alleges that this technology could streamline bank fraud and money laundering, but reports no actual financial loss.
- Company involved
- OKX
- AI system involved
- OnlyFake
10 source articles · read the reporting →
MakeApp makeup removal app adds imperfections, causing controversy
MakeApp, an AI-powered app that digitally removes makeup from photos, has caused controversy by adding imperfections such as redness and dullness to users' faces. Users complained on Twitter that the app exacerbates insecurities and low self-esteem. The founder defended the app as an experiment, denying any intent to shame women.
- Company involved
- MakeApp
- AI system involved
- MakeApp
10 source articles · read the reporting →
RT launches AI-generated presenters without consistent disclosure
RT unveiled AI-generated 'journalists' Anastasia and Alexander on its Spanish-language channel RT Español. In 70% of the videos reviewed, the broadcasts failed to disclose that these presenters were artificial. The presenters covered a range of topics, including controversial and politically sensitive subjects, raising ethical concerns about transparency and potential manipulation of audiences.
- Company involved
- RT
- AI system involved
- Anastasia and Alexander (AI-generated presenters)
3 source articles · read the reporting →
