DEEPFAKE PROBE
LEADERS of the House of Representative yesterday sought an investigation into a deepfake video showing President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. purportedly issuing a controversial order to soldiers.
“This matter involves national security and the malicious dissemination of fabricated information,” Senior Deputy Speaker and Pampanga 3rd District Rep. Aurelio “Dong” Gonzales Jr. said.
He said the concerned agencies, including the Department of Information and Communications Technology and its Cybercrime Investigation and Coordinating Center, should promptly conduct an inquiry.
“We should not allow this to happen again. We should not tolerate criminally-minded persons to wreak havoc on our national security and to give our people fake information,” he said.
He added that the person or persons responsible for the deepfake should be prosecuted.
Sharing Gonzales’ call, Deputy Speaker and Quezon Rep. David “Jayjay” Suarez said the investigating agencies should give the House a periodic report on the progress of its investigation.
He said the agencies could tap private sector experts in their probe.
“It should not be difficult for them to identify the origin of the deepfake and those behind it. I suspect this bogus material originated from somewhere in the south of the country,” he said.
He urged the supposed recipients of the President’s directive not to listen to impostors and fabricators.
“I trust that they will heed instructions issued only through official lines of communication and from the chain of command. I believe in the professionalism and patriotism of our soldiers,” Suarez stressed.
