Virat Kohli, India’s star cricketer, has become the recent target of the notorious deepfake technology. A circulating video on the internet shows Kohli endorsing a betting app that promises significant returns from minimal investments. Moreover, in an attempt to enhance the credibility of the video, the creators have also manipulated the footage by including a widely recognized TV journalist in India.
The viral video portrays Kohli delivering a message in Hindi, endorsing a betting app called ‘Aviator’. In an effort to increase its authenticity, the footage also appears to have been altered to feature a well-known TV journalist- Anjana Om Kashyap, creating a fabricated scenario that implies the advertisement was broadcasted during a live news show. The advertisement also claims that Kohli achieved substantial profits by investing a nominal amount.
Watch The Viral Video Here:
The creators of the video seemingly took a segment from Virat Kohli's well-known interview with Graham Bensinger, superimposed what sounds like a fake voice over the cricketer's original one, and utilised the deepfake technology to synchronise the lip movements, making it appear as though Kohli is lip-syncing the fabricated message.
Notably, Kohli has never endorsed such gaming platforms before. The video implies his endorsement of the app, which allegedly assures significant returns on investments. According to the advertisement, Kohli earned INR 81,000 by investing a mere INR 1,000 within a span of three days. There has been no official statement from Virat Kohli regarding the deepfake video and its content yet.
Similar Deepfake Video Case Of Sachin Tendulkar
Previously, a deepfake video of Sachin Tendulkar also surfaced on Facebook featuring a digitally altered clip and voice of the former Indian batter, falsely portraying him endorse a gaming app. The deepfake attempted to convey the false idea that Tendulkar and his daughter, Sara Tendulkar, had earned substantial sums of money by participating in a specific online game.
Sachin himself came forward and addressed the videos as fake, cautioning social media about such kinds of malpractices. “These videos are fake. It is disturbing to see rampant misuse of technology. Request everyone to report videos, ads & apps like these in large numbers,” he posted on X.