What could someone do to you with an entirely false audio clip that sounds just like you?

Could they damage your relationships? Sure. Scam your loved ones? Probably. Hurt your career or even destroy your public reputation entirely? That’s what nearly happened to one pro-Ukrainian activist in Canada, according to Microsoft Vice Chair and President Brad Smith.

Russian agents “created a fake audio of him saying something he never said. They then took a legitimate real broadcast of the CBC, the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, and they spliced into that this deepfake audio,” Smith explained. “This is the recipe that will probably be followed, take legitimate things and insert forgery within it.”

Smith spoke at a GZERO Global Stage discussion with Ian Bremmer, President and Founder, Eurasia Group & GZERO Media, Eléonore Caroit, Vice-President of the French Parliament’s Foreign Affairs Committee, Rappler CEO Maria Ressa, moderated by Julien Pain, journalist and host of Franceinfo, live from the 2023 Paris Peace Forum.

Watch the full livestream panel discussion: "Live from the Paris Peace Forum: Embracing technology to protect democracy"

The livestream was part of the Global Stage series, produced by GZERO in partnership with Microsoft. These discussions convene heads of state, business leaders, technology experts from around the world for critical debate about the geopolitical and technology trends shaping our world.