Banks are ‘Miles Behind’ Deepfake Threat, Says NCC Co-founder

Banks are “miles behind the curve” of the rising threat of deepfakes and presentation attacks, argues National Cybersecurity Center co-founder Michael Marcotte.

In comments to The Fintech Times, Marcotte argued that too many financial institutions are “still relying on ID card, face, and address verification” in their KYC processes—an approach that he called “neolithic” given the present threat of AI-generated deepfakes and identity fraud.

“The emergence of generative AI tools like Midjourney which anyone can use, and the rapid proliferation of deepfakes online, means that banks are at the wrong end of an acute digital identification and security crisis,” Marcotte said, adding that standard KYC processes “are rendered completely obsolete in the face of hackers who can generate documents and deepfakes to leapfrog facial and ID verification.”

“A 10-year-old in their bedroom can now produce convincing deepfakes or use AI to generate a fake license in a matter of minutes – in the hands of crooks and thugs, this is a deeply worrying prospect,” he added.

The NCC was co-founded in 2016 by former Colorado Governor John Hickenlooper. Recognizing the growing importance of cybersecurity and the need for a coordinated approach to address cyber threats, Hickenlooper envisioned the NCC as a hub for innovation, education, and public-private collaboration in cybersecurity. It is dedicated to enhancing cybersecurity efforts across government, academia, and the private sector.

The nonprofit organization is headquartered in Colorado Springs, Colorado, and has since become a prominent player in the field of cybersecurity, contributing to the development of best practices and strategies to protect against cyber threats.

Marcotte’s comments come after a number of high-profile fraud attacks have already begun to illustrate the threat posed by the kind of generative AI technologies to which he alludes. Earlier this year, for example, a multinational company lost $25 million when an employee was told in a virtual meeting to make a number of money transfers. He thought he was talking to the firm’s CFO, along with other executives; but every face in the call besides his own was a deepfake.

Source: The Fintech Times

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May 17, 2024 – by Alex Perala