Comelec raises alarm of AI, 'deepfake' use during 2025 polls

The Commission on Elections (Comelec) on Wednesday raised the alarm of the use of artificial intelligence (AI) technology and "deepfake" content during the 2025 midterm polls.

In a memorandum dated 28 May, Comelec Chairperson George Erwin M. Garcia raised the "growing concern" among several election management experts in various jurisdictions on the threat of AI technology and "deepfake" to show deceit and misinformation between and among voters and candidates for elections.

"Deepfakes" is defined as an image or recording that has been convincingly altered and manipulated to misrepresent someone as doing or saying something that was not actually done or said.

"Kukumbinsihin ko po ang ating Commission En Banc na ipagbawal namin sa campaign ang paggamit ng deepfakes at AI sapagkat madami po ang nalilito, misrepresentation, madaming hindi makatotohanan na nangyayari kapag ginagamit po yan (I will convince our Commission En Banc that we ban the use of deepfakes and AI in the campaign because there's a lot of confusion, misrepresentation, a lot of untruth that happens when they are used)," Garcia said in an ambush interview.

"Alam po natin ang modern technology. Bakit ba hindi? Subalit dapat po, kapag kampanya, ikaw mismo ang nakikita ng sambayanan (We know about modern technology. Why not? But you should be seen by the people during the campaign)," he added.

The Comelec head also said the abuse of AI technology and "deepfake" videos undermines the integrity of elections and the credibility of public officials, candidates, and election management authorities.

The abuse of this technology in campaign materials, such as videos, audio, or other media forms, he furthered, may amount to fraudulent misrepresentation of candidates.

"This defeats the very purpose of a campaign, which is to fully and truthfully inform the voting public about the elections and the candidates," Garcia noted in the memorandum