What is this technology?

It’s a sophisticated type of software that makes it possible to superimpose one person’s face onto another’s body and manipulate voice recordings, creating fake videos that look and sound real. Hollywood studios have long used computer-generated imagery (CGI) to, say, create fleeting appearances of dead actors. But the process used to be prohibitively expensive and laborious. Today, the technology has improved so much that highly realistic visual and audio fakery can be produced by anyone with a powerful home computer. This has already resulted in a cottage industry of fake celebrity porn. But fears are growing over how else “deepfake” videos could be used—from smearing politicians in elections to inciting major international conflict. Earlier this year, BuzzFeed.com created a “public service announcement” warning of the technology’s dangers, with a deepfake of former President Barack Obama voiced by the comedian and director Jordan Peele. “We’re entering an era,” the fake Obama says, “in which our enemies can make it look like anyone is saying anything.” To illustrate the point, the fake Obama goes on to call President Trump “a total and complete dips---.”