ECI Mandates Labelling of AI-Generated Content in Election Campaigns
UPSC Relevance
Prelims: Indian Polity (Powers and Functions of ECI - Article 324, Model Code of Conduct); Science & Technology (Artificial Intelligence, Deepfakes); Governance (IT Rules, 2021).
Mains:
General Studies Paper 2 (Polity & Governance): Functions of the Election Commission; Electoral reforms; Role of social media in elections; Government policies and interventions.
General Studies Paper 3 (S&T / Security): Awareness in the fields of IT, Computers; Challenges to internal security through communication networks, role of media and social networking sites.
Key Highlights from the News
In the run-up to the Bihar Assembly elections, the Election Commission (EC) issued new advice to political parties.
The warning concerns the use of fake content (synthetically generated information or deepfakes) created using Artificial Intelligence (AI) for election campaigns.
The EC pointed out that the creation of fake videos of political leaders would disrupt the "level-playing field" in elections and affect "voter trust."
New Directive: Any AI-generated image, audio, or video used for election campaigning must be clearly labeled as "AI-Generated."
COMMENTS