Removing deepfakes 'not a sufficient remedy' for eroded trust in older people, says advocacy group

In terms of AI being used as a tool for social interaction for older generations, Ms Casey is expected to say that much of her membership considers such an idea 'abhorrent'.

A leading advocacy group for older people says that the removal of AI deepfakes from the internet is “not a sufficient remedy” for senior citizens who have been duped.

The Irish Senior Citizens’ Parliament (ISCP) is also set to tell an Oireachtas committee that older Irish people have concerns that artificial intelligence (AI) will be put forward as “a solution to loneliness”, with the expectation that they could interact with an AI “to have someone to chat to".

Sharon Casey, the membership development officer with the ISCP, will tell the Oireachtas committee on AI on Tuesday that the “sophistication and accuracy of deepfakes is concerning”.

Deepfake videos typically show misleading video of a famous individual generated by AI. With the rapid advances in generative AI, such videos are becoming indistinguishable from the real thing for the uninitiated.

“Our members, and the Irish public in general, currently have high levels of trust in State institutions,” Ms Casey will tell the committee.

“The sophistication of, and accuracy of, deepfakes is concerning. Yourselves, as politicians, must also be concerned about being misrepresented, and fakes being viewed by and listened to by large numbers of the public,” she will say.

“Having the content removed is not a sufficient remedy as trust is eroded.”

Social interactions

Meanwhile, in terms of AI being used as a tool for social interaction for older generations, Ms Casey is expected to say that much of her membership considers such an idea “abhorrent”.

“Our members are open to exploring how AI might prompt them to action if their cognitive ability becomes impaired,” she will say, using the example of AI-generated reminders for important tasks, but adding that the idea of using the technology as a substitute for human interaction is a step too far.

She will likewise outline concerns among the senior citizenry regarding the unseen costs for older people of staying connected digitally.

“Many technological advances are available for free at the outset. However, when they achieve a high market saturation, the service is monetised,” Ms Casey will say, adding that “the often-repeated phrase [is] if you are not paying, you are the product”.

She will note that many legacy social platforms such as Facebook and Whatsapp remain popular with older people who resist migrating to newer platforms they are unfamiliar with. So, when services such as those introduce subscription charges, they will generally not be noticed by older users, with Ms Casey set to add that tech giant Meta “haven’t received the memo about plain English”.

Separately, the chief executive of the age-awareness charity Alone, Sean Moynihan, will tell the same committee that AI “should complement, not replace, human contact”.

His organisation will only recognise the potential benefits of AI for older people if it is “developed ethically, equitably, and inclusively”, he will say.

Mr Moynihan’s own organisation plans to use AI to “reduce administrative tasks”, enabling its staff to spend more time with older people.

“In our experience, the major barrier to adoption of technology is a lack of system readiness — which relates to technical infrastructure and workforce,” he will tell the committee.

“No matter how advanced a technology is, it will not succeed without appropriate training and support for those expected to use or deliver it.”