In April 2024, investors in India saw something that looked completely routine: the head of the country’s biggest stock exchange recommending stocks on video. It looked like him and sounded like him. It was fake.
What happened
In early April 2024, videos circulated on social media showing Ashishkumar Chauhan, MD and CEO of the National Stock Exchange (NSE), apparently recommending stocks for investment. The NSE said the face or voice of Chauhan and the NSE logo had been used in investment and advisory clips falsely created using technology. According to the exchange, sophisticated technology had been used to imitate his voice and facial expressions.
The deepfake’s realism created confusion among investors. That confusion was the real weapon. The videos worked because they borrowed the authority of a trusted face, not because they were technically flawless. businesstoday
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How NSE responded
The exchange moved quickly and gave investors a clear set of rules:
- Investors were told not to believe or follow advice from such videos, and NSE reminded them that its employees are not authorised to recommend stocks.
- NSE said official communication comes only through its official website and its social media handles, and urged investors to verify the source of any content sent on its behalf.
- The exchange also said it was asking platforms to take the videos down wherever possible.
It wasn’t an isolated case
This wasn’t the first time deepfakes were used for fake investment advice. Earlier videos of Ratan Tata and NR Narayana Murthy had surfaced in which they seemed to promote an investment scheme or platform. The government also took notice. A week later, the Department of Telecommunications warned citizens about fraudulent stock market and trading ads on social media that may use deepfake videos and images.
Why CEO deepfakes work so well
- Borrowed authority. People trust the face of a market regulator or business leader, so they check less.
- Speed over scrutiny. Investment tips tap into urgency and the fear of missing out.
- Easy to share. A short, believable clip can spread across WhatsApp and social media before any correction reaches the same audience.
- Better tools every year. Voice cloning and face synthesis now need only public footage, and public figures have plenty of it.
How to protect yourself
- Stop at “guaranteed returns.” No genuine regulator or exchange head offers personal stock tips in a viral video.
- Check the official channel. As NSE advised, verify on the organisation’s official website and verified handles.
- Look for the signs. Unnatural blinking, lip-sync mismatch, odd lighting around the face, and flat or robotic emotion can all give a fake away. These signs are fading as the tools improve, though.
- Never act on a video alone. Confirm through a registered advisor or official source before moving money.
- Report it. Flag the content on the platform and report fraud through official channels.
The bigger problem: detection isn’t enough
Training people to spot fakes helps, but it’s a race that gets harder every year. As synthetic media improves, “it looks real” will stop being a useful test. The more durable answer is to flip the question from “Is this fake?” to “Can this be proven real?”
That is provenance: attaching verifiable proof of origin to media when it’s created, so audiences can check where it came from.
How Vastavik is working toward a more trusted digital era
This is the problem vastavik.org is built around. Vastavik is a media authentication and verification platform. It lets creators embed unique QR codes and Vastavik IDs into their media so others can verify them easily, and it uses blockchain and AI to support authenticity.
In practice, that means:
- Creators and organisations can stamp their official videos and images with a verifiable ID or QR code.
- Audiences can scan the code or enter the ID to check whether the media is authentic.
- Trust moves from guesswork to proof, since content without verification can be treated with caution.
Imagine if official statements from an exchange, a company, or a public figure carried a code anyone could scan. A fake would have nothing to scan, and viewers would know that immediately. Vastavik offers a free account tier with core authentication and verification features.
Key takeaways
- The NSE deepfake showed that even the most senior, credible faces can be copied convincingly.
- Awareness and official-source checks are the first line of defence.
- Long term, verifiable authenticity, not just detection, will rebuild trust in digital media.
Real content deserves proof. Audiences deserve trust.
Explore how media authentication works at vastavik.org.
Watch Vastavik Introduction Video
Watch How to Authenticate and Verify your media with Vastavik ( Step by Step)
Disclaimer: This article is for awareness only and is not investment advice. Always verify financial information with official sources and SEBI-registered professionals.
