Dove, deepfake and the dangers of social media toxicity

A new campaign for Dove, released online today and running in cinemas across the US and Canada, uses deepfake technology to highlight the dangers of harmful online messaging and the impact it can have on young girls. 

Called Toxic Influence and created by Ogilvy and directed by Henry-Alex Rubin through SMUGGLER, the film is a continuation of the brand's Let’s Change Beauty campaign which kicked off last year with Reverse Selfie [below]. In the near four-minute film we witness a series of mothers and daughters viewing some toxic online commentary before the screen shows those same mothers, who have been unknowingly deepfaked during the casting process, espousing equally harmful insights.

The campaign is a powerful and emotional analysis of the way in which young girls consume such messages, the ability for technology to deceive, and the difficulty of knowing who to trust.