Deepfake of principal’s voice is the latest case of AI being used for harm

By BEN FINLEY
Associated Press

The most recent criminal case involving artificial intelligence emerged from a high school in Baltimore County, Maryland. That’s where police say a principal was framed as racist by a fake recording of his voice. The bogus audio contained racist remarks and caused the administrator to go on leave. Experts say the case is yet another reason why everyone should be concerned about this increasingly powerful technology. In just the last year, online services have gotten good enough to convincingly clone someone’s voice with only 30 seconds of recorded audio. Those seconds can come from a voicemail, social media post or surreptitious recording.