Survey Finds Americans Spot AI Deepfakes at Coin-Flip Rate but Improve After Guidance

A survey by identity verification company Veriff found that Americans distinguish real images from AI-generated deepfakes with accuracy close to a coin flip, CBS News reported. CBS LA Consumer Investigator Kristine Lazar tested the finding on a quiz created by Veriff featuring side-by-side images and videos. She correctly identified three of 12 items for a 25 percent score.

Raul Liive, Veriff's product director, said the results align with the company's tests of the public. He noted that AI technology has improved substantially in recent years, eliminating obvious flaws like missing fingers or unnatural eyes. Liive recommended examining facial features for subtle inconsistencies, unusual texture changes and unnatural patterns.

After receiving his guidance, Lazar retook the quiz and raised her score to eight of 12. Liive said even experts cannot achieve perfect scores without additional tools.