StarDestroyer.Net BBS

A Deepfake, which is defined as a technique for human image synthesis based on artificial intelligence. Considering the advances they have in imaging and holographic technology, and that Sela once used a Spock hologram to try and make an invasion of Vulcan happen, how do 24th century civilizations deal with deepfakes, certifying that a person isn't faking a leader, another person, or other such cases?

How many people might get a fake message asking them to deposit so many bars of gold pressed latinum because a business partner or family member needs it? How do they deal with such things? Data did something similar with the Enterprise computer with Picard's voice to lock out the ship. How is this not a regular occurrence with pirates and more nefarious types in the galaxy?

Discuss.

Out-side universe it's due to sloppy writing and/or not thinking things through. Inside universe it's due to sloppy security; things like Data successfully tricking the E-D computer into thinking he's Picard via voice should be practically impossible to pull off since TNG-era starships have been shown to be fully capable of monitoring the crews' biometrics in real time.

I mean, we are dealing with a security setup where people and shuttlecraft can disappear for hours on end and even though the computer knows exactly when they go missing it won't bother telling anyone unless specifically asked. Honestly, sometimes I think the most likely explanation is that the computer is deliberately trolling the crew for its own amusement

The main reason I can see it not being widespread in the TNG Federation is that their abundant resources, technology (especially replicators) and command style economy (to the point where most citizens don't need/have currency) simply makes the matter moot for most people.

They can analyse them to prove that as Vreenak says 'It's faaaake'

I think them faking up the records in 'In The Pale Moonlight' is the only time it's touched upon in ST. Though in fairness I can't remember if it's specified if Vreenak realised the holograms were faked up in a holosuite or there was something about the rod or security coding there of that clued him to it.

Crazedwraith wrote: ↑2019-04-06 08:20pmI think them faking up the records in 'In The Pale Moonlight' is the only time it's touched upon in ST. Though in fairness I can't remember if it's specified if Vreenak realised the holograms were faked up in a holosuite or there was something about the rod or security coding there of that clued him to it.

Probably the latter, given that Garak correctly predicted that Romulan analysis of the rod after they recovered it from the shuttle wreckage would conclude that any telltales of the forgery were damage from the explosion. They made a big deal of the fact that the data rod they were faking up wasn't the common or garden variety.

Discovery season 2 spoilers: Spoiler

Funnily enough, there’s a group called the Circle of Jilaan which makes a living via this technology. The original was Ardra, who almost conned the planet Ventax II into becoming her slaves and giving her all their treasure (TNG: Devil’s Due), By impersonating their Satan equivalent. The Circle itself finally gets a mention in the Star Trek: Prey trilogy, which elaborates a bit on the group’s motives and methods.

In the Ventax case, the Enterprise crew were able to defeat Ardra’s illusions only by finding and hacking her ship in orbit; it was using a low-quality cloaking device. Regarding the Prey trilogy;

Spoiler
Going on this basis, the Federation and its neighbours are a holographic deepfaker’s paradise; at least if their tech is good enough.

Star TreK:Prey is EU and therefore not really canon, isn't it?

That said I would suspect that there's ways, for example there's hidden code on a transmission with the sole purpose of telling that this is a valid transmission and not a fake. For "in person" interaction there could multiple methods of ID being used, some harder to fake then others.

In the end you don't have to make using Deep fakes impossible, just too hard to be worth the effort.

With the Enterprise, it's possible that Data disabled a bunch of security before voice-faking Picard. He had high level access, and probably completely knowledgable of the Enterprise's computer.