AI-Generated Deepfake Images Linked Kate Garraway to Fictitious Partner
AI-generated deepfake images falsely depicted television presenter Kate Garraway in a romantic relationship with a fictitious partner, reportedly causing her and her children psychological distress over more than a year through algorithm-generated headlines and public inquiries about the non-existent relationship.
What happened
AI-generated deepfake images depicted Good Morning Britain presenter Kate Garraway alongside a fictitious romantic partner. The images showed her with various co-stars and friends including Richard Arnold and Ben Shephard, and Garraway initially laughed off the fake images alongside colleagues.
Reported impact
Garraway reported that people, including those who knew her well, spent over a year incorrectly congratulating her on an alleged new relationship and stopping her in the street with questions about the fake partner. She stated the false rumours were 'hurtful for the kids' and that headlines generated by algorithms claimed knowledge of her non-existent new boyfriend.
Garraway expressed concern that her 16-year-old son was being portrayed in false reports as unhappy with her imagined relationship and obstructive of her happiness. She said the incident left her worrying about trust and proof in the context of AI's capability to fabricate convincing false content.
Index analysis
Garraway said she became aware of the impact the deepfakes might have on her children and Derek's family when algorithm-generated headlines about her 'new boyfriend' appeared. She stated that 'when everything can be faked, proof starts to lose its meaning' and that eroded trust is 'extremely hard to get back.'
Governance controls
Garraway urged the world to 'slow down and actually question what they are seeing' and called for teaching children that scepticism is not cynicism. She also noted the importance of verifying that news comes from trusted sources, saying 'thank goodness we still have some proper human journalists out there.'
Classification
Sources and evidence
This record was researched and written by the Index, based on the following original reporting.