Businesses across all industries are using AI tools to reduce costs, automate time-consuming tasks, and speed up customer service. For all the positive uses of AI, bad actors are also using AI-generated deepfakes for personal or financial gain.
Deepfakes are AI-generated videos, audio clips, photos, text messages, and other media designed to deceive. Unfortunately, tools to create deepfakes are accessible to anyone with internet access making the possibility for an attack immense.
What’s the risk to businesses? Imagine a competitor creates a deepfake video appearing to show your company trainer onboarding employees on how to cheat customers or cut corners. What if a disgruntled employee creates a deepfake, showing a company leader or coworker doing something illegal or inappropriate? Imagine if a video of the company CEO saying that he knew a new product launch wasn’t safe circulated right before a large business deal took place.
Company leaders must ensure that they and their employees are trained to defend against deepfakes and how to react if their company is targeted. A slow response to a deepfake attack can destroy a company’s reputation and brand trust as misinformation spreads thanks to social media at an exponential rate.
In a deep fake crisis scenario, it’s really hard for the average person to believe a company executive who claims something isn’t true, especially when they can watch a video, image, or audio clip of that same executive doing what they just denied.
Below are strategies that training leaders and HR departments can help implement to mitigate and prepare for the threat of deepfakes.
1. Obtain Validation from a Third-party
Deepfakes can spread rapidly across the internet. It is imperative to provide substantial evidence from a valid, third-party forensic expert that the video, audio, or image is fake and was designed with the intent to harm the company or an individual. Every hour that goes by without refuting the deepfake will impact a company’s reputation. Companies should identify experts and deepfake detection software companies in advance of a crisis to save time and get the third-party response and proof out as quickly as possible.
2. Simplify Your Message and Act Quickly
If a deepfake targeting your company spreads, leaders must be prepared to act as quickly as possible. To do that, executives need to prepare key message points in advance. The points should be clear and share how the company is handling the crisis and what the company plans to do when it is over. In addition, a single spokesperson should be chosen to represent the company and ensure consistency of messaging. This spokesperson will be in charge of acknowledging questions quickly in case reporters start asking questions. This also ensures consistency in the response when all info comes from one individual.
3. Stay Transparent With Employees
During a crisis, staff are often most scared- not only for the company but for their own livelihood and how the crisis will affect their own work. Start by talking to your own teams and letting them know how they should respond. As your front-line responders, help them know what to say and how to act as they must communicate with angry, scared customers – calming their fears and resolving their problems. Company leaders should hold meetings with team leaders to give direction on how employees should be handling the crisis. Remember to listen, acknowledge, and respond to their questions. In addition, leaders should set time to check in with employees to make sure they feel supported and to be available in case they have questions or concerns. The simple act of calmly walking among staff and thanking co-workers for their hard work during a crisis will give employees confidence that company leaders are appropriately handling a crisis.
4. Talk to Stakeholders and Partners
Transparency is important. Without divulging too many details, be honest and direct with stakeholders about what’s happening. Depending on the severity of the deepfake, leaders might also consider telling partners and clients. Acknowledge the issue, even if it’s just to say that the company is investigating it. Provide expectations and instructions on what people should do and give consistent updates until the issue is resolved.
5. Monitor the Media
In a crisis, response time is critical to disproving a deepfake and reducing impact. Consistent monitoring for digital misinformation is key. A deepfake will likely be seen by an employee before company leadership. So, train employees to look for false information, report anything suspicious to company leaders and the I.T. department, and never share it on social channels. Similarly, most companies have IT teams to train employees not to respond to phishing emails, click on unknown video links, etc. IT team should also train employees on strategies that can be used to spot deepfake media.
If a deepfake does become widely spread, monitor and track the news outlets, reporters, and platforms that are sharing the misinformation. As you generate your third-party validation that it is, in fact, fake, share it with those same sources. Many will update or remove their initial story, helping to stop its spread.
AI isn’t going away. Companies should embrace AI tools to help improve internal and external processes and to grow their business. However, leaders should prepare for deepfake threats and update their current crisis communications playbook to implement AI crisis. As deepfake threats rise, updating strategy documents will be key to maintaining business.
