Nirmala Sitharaman says several deepfake videos of her being circulated, manipulated: 'We must strengthen our defences'

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Tuesday voiced her concern regarding the growing use of artificial-intelligence-generated deepfakes that are being circulated online, blurring the line between truth and fiction, and said that this trend is "a reminder of the urgency with which we must strengthen our defences".

“I have seen several deepfake videos of myself being circulated online, manipulated to mislead citizens and distort facts. It was a reminder of the urgency with which we must strengthen our defences,” FM Sitharaman said.

"The new generation of fraud is no longer about breaching firewalls, it is about hacking trust. Criminals are using AI to mimic voices, clone identities, and create lifelike videos that can manipulate people," the FM observed.

The finance minister was speaking at the 6th edition of Global Fintech Fest 2025 in Mumbai when she made these comments.

The finance minister then went on to praise the joint initiative by the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) and the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI), which launched a dedicated "@ valid" UPI handle for investor-facing intermediaries registered with the SEBI.

There are also category suffixes such as .brk for brokers and .mf for mutual funds, the finance minister noted.

She also revealed that major brokers who cover more than 90% of Indian investors have already enabled the same.

"The “@ valid” handle establishes a verified, secure payment channel in the securities market while preserving existing payment options, improving safety and accessibility without disrupting user preference," the FM revealed.

Technology must serve humanity: Sitharaman

"Even as AI opens extraordinary possibilities, we must confront its darker side. The same tools that power innovation can be weaponised for deception and for fraud," Sitharaman said at the event.

“Undoubtedly, artificial intelligence is transforming finance, transforming governance and also everyday life. But as we harness its powers, we must remain conscious that technology must always serve humanity,” she was quoted by the Times of India as saying.

What are SEBI-validated UPI handles?

As per a press release by SEBI, it has introduced from October 1 a "structured and validated Unified Payment Interface (UPI) address mechanism, featuring the exclusive "@valid" handle, for all SEBI-registered investor-facing intermediaries".

The intermediary will choose a readable username for their SEBI-validated UPI handles, which will be followed by a suffix, such as .brk for brokers and .mf for mutual funds.

Investors will also see a thumbs-up inside a green triangle icon while making payment to a registered intermediary, the markets regulator revealed.

Investors have also been asked to generate a QR code using this “thumbs-up" logo to enhance investor confidence.

SEBI Check

SEBI has rolled out 'SEBI Check', which allows investors to verify UPI IDs and bank account details (account number + IFSC) of registered intermediaries across UPI, NEFT, RTGS, and IMPS before initiating payments, via the web portal and the Saarthi app.

The framework embeds responsible use of technology through privacy preserving verification, secure processing, audit trails, and continuous improvement informed by flagged mismatches and user reports, as per Sitharaman.