TEAMS GET UP TO EUR 725,000 FOR IDEAS ON DETECTING AND PREVENTING DEEPFAKES

The rapid development of deepfake technologies poses an increasing threat to the integrity of digital media and trust in information. According to a Bitkom survey, 81 percent of respondents cannot recognize deepfakes at all or have great difficulty recognizing them. To meet this challenge, the Federal Agency for Disruptive Innovation SPRIND is launching the innovation competition SPRIND Funke “Deepfake Detection and Prevention” on behalf of the Federal Ministry for Digital and Transport (BMDV) today. In two stages, up to 14 teams will develop solutions for detecting deepfakes.

DR. VOLKER WISSING, FEDERAL MINISTER FOR DIGITAL AND TRANSPORT:

“With this innovation competition, we are sending out a clear signal against manipulated media content. We need fast, practical solutions to reliably detect and prevent deepfakes. It must be as easy as possible for users to distinguish genuine from fake content. This is the only way we can strengthen trust in artificial intelligence and effectively protect our fundamental rights online. I hope that there will be broad participation and that we will soon see the results of the competition in use.”

RAFAEL LAGUNG, DIRECTOR OF SPRIND:

“The aim of this competition is to develop advanced technologies for effectively detecting deepfakes as well as innovative mechanisms and concepts for preventing manipulated images. The envisaged solutions are to cover the entire value chain of digital media processing – from preventive authentication and protection of original content, real-time analysis and detection of manipulated media, through to seamless integration into existing digital infrastructures and platforms.”