Ultra-sexualized images of Billie Eilish likened to “deepfake pornography” recently went viral on TikTok and the app's algorithm subsequently amplified them. As many as 11 million people viewed a photo gallery video featuring the singer’s face on sexually exaggerated bodies in just four days. The content was eventually removed for violating TikTok’s community guidelines around sexual harassment.
Tracy Harwood, professor of digital culture at the UK’s De Montfort University, told VICE World News that the images could have been created using some form of AI imaging or AI art generator app. Tiktok's guidelines day that overtly sexualized content is ineligible, but despite that, the video appeared on the app's 'For You' page.
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Hera Hussain, founder and CEO of Chayn, which supports victims of gender-based violence on and offline, said: “The TikTok algorithm isn't set up to discern between what kind of content is getting engagement and this is a critical issue. It should not recommend these videos to the feeds of their users. It's not a harmless meme. It's not a still from the singer's own videos. It's a hyper-sexualized AI-manipulated image."
The TikTok account that posted the images had more than 76,000 followers. It was linked to an Instagram account with just over 2,000 followers, that shared the images too. In its Instagram stories, it posted manipulated images of Eilish, saying “$20 uncensored images. Inbox”. Users were invited to pay for more explicit content.
Harwood said there is strong evidence to suggest that these images were created using artificial intelligence. “The closer you look at the images, the more you can see problems with them – like the outfit not really being the same on both sides of the image, and edges not clearly defined; the skin finish looking plastic in places," Harwood said.
A TikTok spokesperson said: "This content violates our Community Guidelines, which clearly states that we do not allow content which alters or morphs an image of another individual to portray or imply sexual suggestiveness."
Deepfake is a technique that creates and publishes false information in the form of videos, audio, and photos. Such technologies can become dangerous tools when accessed by cybercriminals and online scammers. BBC reported that fakes depicting Emma Watson are among the most popular on deepfake communities, as are those depicting Natalie Portman. Clips have also been made on Michelle Obama, Ivanka Trump and Kate Middleton.
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