Experts are warning that it is becoming harder for people to tell whether a doctor appearing in an online advertisement is a real person or a deepfake, according to CBC. The Canadian broadcaster reported on Friday that the growing sophistication of AI-generated video is making these scams more difficult to detect.
CBC's reporting points to a wider pattern in which artificial intelligence is used to fabricate endorsements. Separate coverage cited in the same roundup describes deepfake ads that put creators' faces behind products they never agreed to promote. Other reports say real doctors have had their identities taken over to market unproven health treatments.
The common thread is trust. Health and wellness advertising leans on the authority of a medical professional, and that authority is exactly what scammers are reproducing with AI tools. Because the fakes are built from real footage and images, viewers cannot rely on simply recognising a familiar face.
The material reviewed does not specify how many people have been affected or which platforms are most targeted, and CBC's report does not put a figure on the scale of the problem. What it does make clear, per CBC, is that the technology behind these ads is improving faster than the average viewer's ability to question what they see.
For now, the practical advice implied by the coverage is caution: treat medical claims in ads with suspicion, particularly when they arrive through social platforms rather than a clinic or health authority. Watch for whether regulators and advertising networks introduce verification tools for health-related endorsements, and whether platforms begin labelling or removing AI-generated medical content.