Video deep-sighted eyes now has a lifelike heartbeat pulse

The weapons race between Deepfake creators and detectors reached a critical turning point. Researchers have found that modern deep strikes can now replicate what was previously thought impossible: a realistic human heartbeat.

Scientists at the Fraunhofer Heinrich-Hertz-Institute in Germany and Humboldt University in Berlin discovered that the current DeepFake video inadvertently mimics the subtle fluctuations of skin tone caused by blood flow in the face, which can actually “inherit” the pulse from the original source video.

“Here, we show for the first time that recent high-quality deep videos can show realistic heartbeats and slight changes in facial color, which makes them harder to detect,” said Dr. Peter Eisert, a professor at Humboldt University in Berlin.

This discovery challenges the main detection methods currently used to reveal fake videos. So far, many experts believe that the lack of physiological signals such as pulse is a reliable marker for identifying deep strikes.

The team developed a complex pipeline for extracting and analyzing heart-related signals from videos via remote photography (RPPG) that detects changes in blood volume below the skin. When they applied this technology to high-quality deep hits, they were surprised to find that these fake videos showed nearly the same pulse signal as in the original video.

“Our results suggest that the attacker may have intentionally added a realistic heartbeat, but could also be unintentionally “inherited” from the real video of driving. The slight changes in the skin tone of the real person are transferred to the depths along with facial movements in order to copy the original pulse in the fake video,” explains Dr. Eisert.

The study analyzed videos from multiple sources, including custom datasets with ECG measurements and public videos. In all cases, deep photography showed a difference in heart rate from source video at only a few beats per minute, which was far beyond the error range of this technology.

These findings have attracted serious concerns about the reliability of the current DeepFake detection system. As manipulation technology advances, it becomes increasingly difficult to separate real media from synthetic media, which can have devastating consequences for misunderstanding movements and political manipulation.

Fortunately, the researchers identified potential anti-strategy. While DeepFakes can now mimic the global pulse of the entire face, they still cannot accurately reproduce the anatomically correct blood flow patterns within different facial areas.

“Our experiments show that current deep strikes may show a real heartbeat, but do not show physiologically realistic changes in blood flow across space and time,” Dr. Eisert said. “We suggest that the next generation of deep detectors should take advantage of the weaknesses of state-of-the-art deep strikes.”

This study highlights the ongoing cat and mouse game between creation and detection techniques. As deep fruits become more complex, detection methods must be developed accordingly, focusing on increasingly subtle physiological markers that are increasingly difficult to replicate.

The study, published in the field of imaging, is both a warning about the growing complexity of synthetic media and a roadmap for developing more powerful verification systems in an era that can no longer be equated with belief.

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