New tool to combat deepfakes and build trust in media

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The rise of deepfakes is set to be challenged with the publication of a new way of identifying authentic content.

The new standard, JPEG Trust, will enable photos and videos to be ‘tagged’ and authenticated so that users and creators can build trust in media content.

Deepfakes are media that have been digitally manipulated, often using artificial intelligence, to create a likeness of a convincingly realistic person.

Imitating identities to commit fraud and concocting fake videos to spread ‘false news’ are just some examples of how deepfakes are used maliciously, with potentially very damaging consequences.

While many experts and organisations are attempting to identify and prevent deepfakes, the technology is becoming so sophisticated that soon even experts trained to detect them will soon fail.

A new, revolutionary solution is JPEG Trust. Aimed at increasing trust in shared media through identification and authentication, JPEG Trust is a standard that can enable a secure and reliable way of tagging media and any modifications. It features ‘trust indicators’ around authenticity, provenance and integrity, meaning users of content can see where it has come from and if it has been tampered with or not.

The first version of the standard, ISO/IEC 21617-1:2025 ‘Information technology — JPEG Trust — Part 1: Core foundation’, has been published and it is expected to evolve as technologies evolve too.