30% of the Indians surveyed claimed that they found 25% or more videos that they watched to be fake. Here's a look at how deepfakes are affecting India.

Fake News Alert: 25% of Online Videos Watched by Indians Are Not Real!

Deepfakes on social media have become a huge problem recently, and many actors and public figures have had to deal with this nasty practice. Not only has the frequency of deepfake content increased in India, but the ability of synthetic AI-based apps to create more convincing and authentic-looking content has also rapidly evolved. In fact, deep fakes have even reached India’s election-bound states, giving the government a major reason to curb this menace.

Now, according to a survey by LocalCircles, 30% of Indians watched a lot of videos that they later find to be fake and want platforms to remove them within 24 hours. LocalCircles surveyed over 32,000 people in 319 circles in India. Of this pool, 64% of the respondents were male and 36% were female.

43% of Indians surveyed said they watch at least three short videos a day

Short-form content takes up a lot of time from people’s lives every day, whether it’s YouTube shorts, Instagram reels, or even WhatsApp broadcasts.

LocalCircles asked people, on average, what percentage of short videos they watch on a phone, tablet or laptop every day. 11,173 people answered this question. 35% said they rarely watch short videos, 22% say they watch 1-2 videos a day, and 3% say they watch 15-20 videos a day. At the extreme, 4% of respondents said they watch more than 20 short videos a day.

30% of Indians surveyed claimed that they considered 25% or more of the videos they watched to be fake.

Of the 10,838 people who responded, 37% said they had seen videos that turned out to be fake. 6% of these people said more than half of the videos they watched were fake, 24% said they watched 25-50% fake videos, 6% said it was 10-25%, and 17% said it was 1.% – 10%. Overall, 30% of respondents said that 25% of the videos they watched were fake.

People want social media platforms to resist deep fake content

LocalCircles points out that 56% of Indians surveyed want deepfake videos circulating on the social media platform featuring themselves or their family members to be removed quickly. They say a responsible platform should remove such content within 24 hours of receiving a complaint.

Additionally, LocalCircles notes that this survey was conducted on the LocalCircles platform and “all participants were validated citizens who were required to register with LocalCircles to participate in this survey.”