Meta has introduced a new tool designed to apply an invisible watermark to videos created using artificial intelligence (AI). Named Video Seal, this tool complements the company’s existing watermarking offerings, including Audio Seal and Watermark Anything. Meta has indicated intentions to open-source the tool, although the code has yet to be made publicly available. The company asserts that the watermarking method will not degrade video quality and will be resistant to common removal techniques.
The proliferation of deepfakes has become increasingly problematic in the era of generative AI. These synthetic media creations typically depict misleading or false representations of people, objects, or situations. Deepfakes are often employed to disseminate misinformation about public figures, fabricate explicit content, or facilitate scams and fraud.
Moreover, as AI technology advances, recognizing deepfake content is expected to become more challenging, complicating efforts to distinguish between genuine and altered media. A recent survey by McAfee revealed that 70 percent of respondents expressed uncertainty regarding their ability to differentiate between real and AI-generated voices.
According to internal data from Sumsub, incidents of deepfake fraud surged by 1,740 percent in North America and 1,530 percent in the Asia-Pacific region in 2022. The prevalence of such fraud is reported to have increased tenfold between 2022 and 2023.
In light of rising concerns surrounding deepfake technology, several companies developing AI models have begun to release watermarking solutions to help identify synthetic content. Earlier this year, Google unveiled SynthID for watermarking AI-generated text and videos, and Microsoft has also introduced similar tools. Additionally, the Coalition for Content Provenance and Authenticity (C2PA) is working on establishing new standards for recognizing AI-generated content.
Meta’s newly launched Video Seal tool is designed to watermark every frame of a video with an imperceptible tag that is designed to be untouchable. The tool is reported to withstand various manipulation methods, including blurring, cropping, and compression software, while maintaining video quality.
While Meta has confirmed that Video Seal will be open-sourced under a permissive license, the timeline for its public release and the availability of its code has not yet been disclosed.
