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WSJ Tech News Briefing · Saturday, August 15, 2026

AI fakes are getting harder to spot; younger generations 'savvy' but not immune

While younger generations might be more tech-savvy due to growing up with digital content, Hani Farid warns that even seasoned fact-checkers can be fooled by sophisticated AI fakes. He notes that older generations are particularly vulnerable due to a learned trust in written information.

personHani FaridpersonMegan

The tape

3 quotes
Older generations are having more trouble. My parents' generation, soon to be my generation. They're not used to it. They're used to, I read it, therefore it's true.
Hani Farid
I mean, honestly, say what you want about Gen Z's and Millennials. They're pretty savvy. They grew up with this.
Hani Farid
I was initially fooled by that Pope photo in the jacket.
Megan
Heard on WSJ Tech News Briefing — “To Spot AI Fakes, Think Like a Digital Forensics Expert, published Saturday, August 15, 2026. Heardvine summarizes and quotes with attribution and timestamps, and links to the original everywhere.
Transcribed via Gemini audio transcription · $0.04
AI fakes are getting harder to spot; younger generations 'savvy' but not immune — Heardvine