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Ages 10+ · Digital Life · Scams and fakes
Spotting AI fakes
🖼️a picture🎬a video🎤a voice🔍check the source🧑tell a grown-up
Computers can fake all three.
The big ideaComputers can fake pictures, videos and voices. Check the source and ask a grown-up.

How it works

A computer can make a fake picture, a fake video or a fake voice. These are often called AI fakes.

Some fakes are just for fun, and others are made as tricks. Clues can help, but fakes keep getting better.

No clue does not mean real. The big step is to check the source: where did this come from?

A voice can be copied from a short recording. What it asks for is the clue: money, a hurry, or "do not tell."

In a picture or video• Odd hands or feet• Odd or jumbled text• Shadows pointing two ways• A mouth that misses the wordsIn a voice• It asks for money• It is in a hurry• It says do not tell anyone• An unknown number
Clues to look for.
Do not send orreplyHang upCall back on anumber you knowTell a grown-up
A voice that sounds like family.

Example 1: The cat as big as a bus

  1. Lucia's picture shows a cat as big as a bus.
  2. Tomas finds an extra toe on a paw and jumbled letters on a sign.
  3. Lucia says a computer drew it from her words. It was a fun fake.

Example 2: The voice that sounds like Pop

  1. A voice message says, "Buy a gift card, send me the code, and do not tell anyone."
  2. It sounds just like Pop, but Pop is at the sink, humming.
  3. Tomas buys nothing, sends no reply and shows Pop, who says it is a copy of his voice.

Example 3: A family word

  1. Tomas and Pop pick a family word that only the family knows. If Tomas is not sure about a call, he asks for the word.
  2. He also hangs up and calls back on the number he already knows, not the one that called.
  3. They pick a new word without the parrot listening!
Ask for the familywordHang upCall back
Not sure it is family?

Words to know

AI fake
A picture, video or voice a computer made to look or sound real.
source
Where something came from.
family word
A word only your family knows, for checking a call.

Watch out

Try it

  1. A voice sounds just like a family member and asks for gift card codes. What now?
  2. A picture has no odd hands or text. Is it surely real?
  3. Is it okay to make a fake picture of a teacher dancing, as a joke?
  4. A caller says they are family. What can you ask for?
Answers: 1. Stop, and tell a grown-up · 2. No, keep checking the source · 3. No · 4. The family word
Try at homeWith a grown-up, pick a family word that only your family knows. Write down the phone numbers you call back on.
For grown-upsChoose a family word together, and write down the phone numbers your child should call back on. Keep both off any screen.
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