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Deepfake Porn Could Be A Growing Problem Amid AI Race

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NEW YORK —  Deepfake AI imaging may be used to make art, try on garments in virtual fitting rooms, and assist in the design of advertising campaigns.

However, experts are concerned that the darker side of the freely accessible techniques would exacerbate something that predominantly impacts women: nonconsensual deepfake pornography.

Deepfakes are films and images made or changed digitally using artificial intelligence or machine learning. Porn generated with the technology became popular several years ago when a Reddit user published films of female celebrities’ faces on the shoulders of porn actors.

Deepfake producers have since distributed similar movies and images aimed at online influencers, journalists, and anyone with a public presence. Thousands of videos can be found on a variety of websites. And some have allowed users to generate their photos, effectively allowing anyone to turn anyone into a sexual fantasy without their knowledge or to use the technology to punish former partners.

Experts claim the problem developed as it got simpler to create complex and visually appealing deepfakes. They also believe that developing generative AI tools, trained on billions of images from the internet and spitting out unique material utilizing current data, would exacerbate the problem.

“The reality is that technology will continue to proliferate, develop, and become sort of as easy as pushing a button,” said Adam Dodge, founder of EndTAB, a company that gives training on technology-enabled abuse. “And as long as this happens, people will undoubtedly… continue to misuse that technology to harm others, primarily through online sexual violence, deep fake pornography, and fake nude images.”

Noelle Martin of Perth, Australia, has firsthand knowledge of this fact. The 28-year-old discovered deep fake porn of herself ten years ago when searching for an image of herself on Google. Martin claims she has no idea who made the phony photographs or videos of her participating in sexual intercourse that she later discovered. She believes someone doctored a photo she shared on her social media page or elsewhere into porn.

deepfake

Deepfake producers have since distributed similar movies and images aimed at online influencers.

Martin, terrified, contacted various websites for several years in an attempt to have the photographs removed. Some people have yet to answer. Others took it down, but she quickly restored it.

“You cannot win,” Martin declared. “This is something that will always be there.” It’s as if it’s permanently destroyed you.” deepfake

She claimed that the more she spoke up, the worse the situation became. Some even told her how she dressed and posted photographs on social media led to the harassment, blaming her rather than the creators.

Martin then shifted her focus to legislation, campaigning for a national law in Australia that would pay firms 555,000 Australian dollars ($370,706) if they failed to comply with removal demands for such content from online safety regulators.

However, controlling the internet is nearly impossible when countries have their own rules for content created halfway around the world. Martin, an attorney and legal scholar at the University of Western Australia, feels the problem must be addressed through a worldwide approach.

deepfake

Meanwhile, other AI models claim to be restricting access to obscene imagery.

OpenAI eliminated explicit content from data used to train the image-generating tool DALL-E, limiting users’ ability to make such types of images. In addition, the corporation filters requests and claims to prevent people from building AI representations of celebrities and prominent politicians. Another model, Midjourney, prohibits the usage of specific keywords and encourages users to report bad photographs to administrators.

Meanwhile, in November, the startup Stability AI released an upgrade that removed the ability to make explicit images using their image generator Stable Diffusion. These changes were made in response to allegations that some users were using the technology to create celebrity-inspired nude photos.

According to Motez Bishara, a spokeswoman at Stability AI, the filter detects nudity using keywords and other approaches, such as picture recognition and produces a blurred image. However, because the corporation distributes its code to the public, individuals can modify the software and generate whatever they want. According to Bishara, the license for Stability AI “extends to third-party applications built on Stable Diffusion” and explicitly prohibits “any misuse for illegal or immoral purposes.”

Some social media businesses have also tightened their policies to protect their platforms from unwanted content.

TikTok announced last month that all deepfakes or edited content depicting realistic situations must be labeled as fake or altered in some way and that deepfakes of private figures and young people are no longer permitted. Previously, the business prohibited sexually explicit content and deepfakes, which mislead users about real-world events and cause harm.

Twitch also recently amended its standards regarding graphic deep fake photos after a popular streamer named Atrioc was caught with a deep fake porn website open in his browser during a live stream in late January. The website displayed bogus photographs of Twitch streamers.

Twitch already outlawed explicit deepfakes, but revealing a glimpse of such content — even if done to express anger — “will be removed and will result in an enforcement,” the firm warned in a blog post. Intentionally promoting, making, or sharing the material will result in an immediate suspension.

deepfake

The identical app that Google and Apple banned had been running advertisements on Meta’s platform.

Other companies have attempted to prohibit deepfakes from their platforms, although doing so requires vigilance.

Apple and Google recently announced the removal of an app from their app stores that were displaying sexually provocative deep fake videos of actresses to advertise the product. Deepfake porn research is scarce, but one analysis published in 2019 by the AI startup DeepTrace Labs discovered that it was almost totally weaponized against women, with Western actors being the most targeted, followed by South Korean K-pop singers.

The identical app that Google and Apple banned had been running advertisements on Meta’s platform, which includes Facebook, Instagram, and Messenger. According to Meta spokesperson Dani Lever, the company’s policy forbids both AI-generated and non-AI adult content, and it has barred the app’s page from advertising on its platforms.

In February, Meta and adult sites such as OnlyFans and Pornhub began participating in Take It Down, an online program allowing teens to report obscene photographs and videos of themselves online. The reporting service accepts both ordinary photographs and AI-generated content, which has been a significant source of concern for child protection organizations.

“When people ask our senior leadership what the boulders coming down the hill are that we’re worried about, we tell them that they’re coming down the hill.” The first is end-to-end encryption and its implications for kid safety. The second is artificial intelligence, notably deepfakes,” said Gavin Portnoy, a spokesperson for the National Centre for Missing and Exploited Children, which maintains the Take It Down service.

“We have not… yet been able to respond directly to it,” Portnoy said.

SOURCE – (AP)

Kiara Grace is a staff writer at VORNews, a reputable online publication. Her writing focuses on technology trends, particularly in the realm of consumer electronics and software. With a keen eye for detail and a knack for breaking down complex topics, Kiara delivers insightful analyses that resonate with tech enthusiasts and casual readers alike. Her articles strike a balance between in-depth coverage and accessibility, making them a go-to resource for anyone seeking to stay informed about the latest innovations shaping our digital world.

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Man Set Himself Ablaze Outside New York Courthouse

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The smell of smoke lingered: Getty Image

A man set himself on fire outside the New York courthouse where former President Donald Trump’s historic hush-money trial was taking place, but officials said he did not appear to be targeting Trump.

The man burned for many minutes in full front of television cameras stationed outside the courthouse, which is hosting the first-ever criminal prosecution of a former United States president.

“He was on fire for quite a while,” one witness told reporters, declining to provide his name. “It was pretty horrifying.”

Officials said the man, who is in his late thirties, survived and was in critical condition at a hospital.

According to witnesses, the man removed leaflets from a rucksack and hurled them into the air before dousing himself with liquid and setting himself on fire. One of the booklets mentioned “evil billionaires,” but the portions accessible to a Reuters witness did not mention Trump.

According to the New York Police Department, Max Azzarello of St. Augustine, Florida, did not appear to target Trump or any other trial participants.

“Right now, we are labeling him as a conspiracy theorist, and we will proceed from there,” Tarik Sheppard, a deputy commissioner of the Police Department, said at a news conference.

In an online manifesto, a man using that name admitted to setting himself on fire and apologized to friends, bystanders, and first responders. The message warns of “an apocalyptic fascist coup” and condemns Bitcoin and US politicians but does not mention Trump specifically.

A Reuters witness reported that smoke persisted in the plaza shortly after the incident and that a police officer sprayed a fire extinguisher on the ground. A flaming rucksack and a gas can were both visible.

US Truckers Boycott New York, Rally Behind Trump

US Truckers Boycott Corrupt New York, Rally Behind Trump

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Top 6 SaaS Marketing Agencies in 2024: Drive Growth, Leads & Revenue

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Top 6 SaaS Marketing Agencies in 2024 Drive Growth, Leads & Revenue

We can help you achieve your goals whether you want to increase organic traffic, drive qualified leads, or increase revenue with SaaS growth marketing agencies. This article provides a list of the top 6 SaaS marketing agencies to help you reach your goals and achieve the results you desire.

Our discussion will focus on their services and how they can assist your business in achieving its goals. So, let’s dive into it.

Why Should You Choose a SaaS Marketing Agency?

If you are a business owner, you know the importance of a successful marketing strategy.

It is important to consider several factors when choosing the right SaaS marketing agency for your business.

The most important ones are as follows:

1. Experience & Reputation – You should look for a SaaS marketing agency that has proven success growing similar businesses to yours in the past. Find an agency that has worked with similar businesses in the past with proven success stories.

2. Services They Offer – The services of your chosen SaaS marketing agency should align with your goals and objectives. Does the agency offer content creation or SEO services? Does the agency have experience with social media campaigns?

3. Cost – Choosing a SaaS marketing agency is an important decision. You should make sure you are getting value for your money by understanding what each service entails before signing a contract.

4. Communication & transparency – Select a marketing agency that understands your needs and communicates transparently about what can be achieved within your budget. Additionally, ensure they provide regular updates on your campaign’s progress.

Here are some of the best agencies to consider collaborating with.

Here are the six best B2B SaaS marketing agencies to work within 2024 based on their track records

1. Omnius

With inbound marketing, Omnius helps SaaS and Fintech businesses generate steady flows of new organic leads and customers.

This agency helps SaaS owners achieve business goals by creating content that ranks and educates their ICPs about the product.

Additionally, Omnius maintains all operations (content writing, design, and SEO) under one roof, so businesses do not have to worry about micromanaging the process.

In addition to a systematized management process, all operations are transparent, including:

  • Updates in real time,

  • weekly reports,

  • and publishing dates, so you can plan the rest of the marketing activities.

What Services Does Omnius Provide You With?

Omnius offers a comprehensive range of holistic services, including:

  • Content Marketing – Bringing qualified traffic that converts to your website by creating engaging and product-led text and video content.

  • SEO – Omnius assists in building healthy growth focused on ROI by solving the technical aspects of SEO and identifying the money keywords.

  • UI/UX Design – We build frictionless, functional user experiences by combining 10+ years of SaaS experience with deep research and the latest design trends.

  • Web development – Omnius builds high-performance websites by combining the latest web development practices.

With Omnius, innovative enterprise and startup companies like TextCortex, Myos, Glorify, Tapni, Skylead, Glorify, etc., have benefited from organic traffic growth and qualified leads.

Pricing

Please use the contact form to obtain more information about Omnius’ services and pricing.

Prices for Omnius services vary according to the type of service you require.

2. Writing Studio

With 80+ writers and 15+ editors on staff, Writing Studio offers all types of writing services.

Their writing services cover various industries, including accounting, architecture, B2B business, etc.

What Services Does Writing Studio Provide You With?

The Writing Studio provides a wide range of writing services, including:

  • Blog post-writing services – provide valuable information about your product to current and potential customers.

  • Ebook writing – Providing your customers with various ideas and information that is easy to read and available in various formats.

  • Product description writing – Develop concise and engaging product descriptions to solve customers’ problems and increase conversions.

  • Script, technical writing – We provide a wide range of writing services, such as video scripts, technical information, web content, newsletters, etc.

Pricing

There are three types of paid plans offered by Writing Studio:

3. Animalz

Content creation is a specialty of Animalz, a marketing agency.

As with Omnius, their content marketing services focus on creating content and optimizing your website to establish your business as an authority in the field.

Animalz provides content marketing services to enterprises, startups, and venture capital firms.

What Services Does Animalz Provide You With?

Animalz offers the following services:

  • SEO consulting – Services include content audits, keyword research and planning, and site structure audits.

  • Brand awareness – Creating articles, conference presentations, and partnership-based content to promote your brand.

  • Lead generation – Creating landing pages, ebooks, and whitepapers that attract and generate new leads for the company.

  • Product marketing – Producing case studies, knowledge-based articles, and video scripts that promote your products.

  • Promotion and distribution – Create engaging social media posts and email copy to attract backlinks and increase distribution.

Pricing

The pricing information offered by Animalz depends on demand, and you can obtain it by contacting the company.

4. Codeless

Codeless provides SEO strategy, content writing, design, and video content creation to maximize your return on investment.

Their primary focus is creating informative, high-quality articles that rank well on search engines.

What Services Does Codeless Provide You With?

Codeless provides SEO and content services that include:

  • SEO strategy consulting – Provides suggestions and advice for improving the search engine optimization of your website content.

  • Keyword research and topic ideation – Find keywords related to your business and discover topics to write about.

  • SERP analysis and optimization – Provides content planning, content optimization, plagiarism detection, and draft review services.

  • Account management – We provide you with an expert that will manage all your content publishing activities within any CMS or tool that you may be using.

Pricing

Clients can choose from three different plan packages offered by Codeless:

5. Kalungi

Founded in 2010, Kalungi is an on-demand B2B SaaS marketing agency.

The Kalungi content marketing services are designed specifically for entrepreneurs without marketing expertise or who require more time to develop a content marketing team.

B2B SaaS growth can be divided into three stages:

  • Coach – for companies between $0-1M ARR

  • Start – for companies between $1M-10M ARR

  • Scale – for companies between $10M-100M ARR

  • Profit – for companies over $100M ARR

What Services Does Kalungi Provide You With?

To create fully engaging and optimized processes for success, Kalungi helps businesses with:

  • Content strategy

  • Design and rebranding

  • Marketing automation and operations

  • List building

  • Account-based marketing (ABM)

  • SEO

  • Partnerships

  • Analyst relations

Pricing

Kalungi’s plans are not fixed and depend on the company’s needs since they work with four types of companies.

6. Vajra Global

Vajra Global is a digital marketing agency that specializes in the digital space and provides a wide range of digital marketing services.

In 2016, the company was founded in India and provides businesses with various services, including digital marketing, web development, analytics, and tracking.

Whether you are seeking to increase brand awareness or improve conversion rates, Vajra can help you achieve your business goals.

What Services Does Vajra Global Provide You With?

To help your business grow online, Vajra Global offers a complete package of services, including:

  • SEO strategy

  • Content and Social media marketing

  • Email and LinkedIn marketing

  • PPC

  • Web design and development

  • UI/UX & Graphic design

  • Video production

  • Marketing Analytics

Pricing

For more information about Vajra’s pricing plans, please contact them using the form.

Wrapping Up

In 2024, you can work with some excellent SaaS marketing agencies.

Your choice of marketing agency will depend on your marketing needs, what you wish to focus on, and what results you wish to achieve.

Would you like to learn more about how SEO and content marketing can help your SaaS business grow from zero to one hundred thousand users in a short period?

Contact us for a free consultation, and we will be glad to answer all your questions and explain how you can start generating leads using our Product-led approach.

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Best Free Email Marketing Tools for 2024: Boost Your Campaigns Affordably

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Best Free Email Marketing Tools for 2024 Boost Your Campaigns Affordably

Introduction to Email Marketing Tools

You can reach and engage your audience effectively through email marketing in today’s digital age. Any business owner, marketer, or blogger must have access to reliable email marketing tools in order to build and maintain relationships with their subscribers and customers. Many businesses, especially startups and small enterprises, seek free alternatives that offer essential features without breaking the bank, despite the numerous paid options available.

Why Use Free Email Marketing Tools?

In order to establish an online presence and increase the number of customers, businesses can benefit from free email marketing tools. With these platforms, you can create professional-looking campaigns, automate processes, and analyze performance metrics at a fraction of the cost of premium platforms.

Criteria for Choosing Email Marketing Tools

To ensure that a free email marketing tool meets your business’ needs, it is important to consider several factors:

Pricing

  • Comparing the free and paid plans will help you understand its limitations.

Features

  • Analyze the features provided, such as email templates, automation, segmentation, and analytics.

User Interface

  • The interface must be user-friendly in order to facilitate navigation and the creation of campaigns.

Integration Options

  • Make sure the tool can be integrated with your existing software stack (e.g., CRM systems, eCommerce platforms).

Top 11 Free Email Marketing Tools

Let’s explore some of the best free email marketing tools available today:

  1. Mailchimp

  2. Sendinblue

  3. MailerLite

  4. Benchmark Email

  5. SendPulse

  6. Moosend

  7. Omnisend

  8. Sender

  9. Mailjet

  10. HubSpot Email Marketing

  11. Zoho Campaigns

Features and Benefits of Each Tool

There are a number of features and benefits associated with each of these tools, which cater to the unique needs and preferences of various businesses. For instance:

  • Mailchimp has intuitive email templates and robust analytics.

  • Sendinblue offers marketing automation and SMS marketing services.

  • MailerLite emphasizes simplicity and ease of use for beginners.

  • Benchmark Email emphasizes A/B testing and responsive design.

  • SendPulse is a single platform that combines email, SMS, and web push notifications.

  • Moosend excels at automating workflows and personalizing them.

  • Omnisend provides omnichannel marketing services.

  • Sender offers advanced reporting and segmentation capabilities.

  • Mailjet offers transactional email capabilities that set it apart from its competitors.

  • HubSpot Email Marketing is seamlessly integrated with other HubSpot products.

  • Zoho Campaigns integrates with a wide range of CRM systems.

How to Get Started with Free Email Marketing Tools

The process of getting started with these tools is usually straightforward. You sign up for an account, import your contacts, and begin creating your first email campaign using the templates and tools provided.

Tips for Maximizing Free Plans

In order to maximize the potential of free email marketing tools, follow these steps:

  • Stay within the limits of your free plan by optimizing your contact list.

  • Send personalized messages with automation to save time.

  • A/B testing can be used to improve the performance of a campaign.

  • Make use of reporting and analytics to refine your strategy.

Paid Plans vs. Free Plans

While free plans offer essential features, upgrading to a paid plan unlocks additional capabilities such as advanced segmentation, unlimited contacts, and advanced automation.

Case Studies: Successful Use of Free Email Marketing Tools

In recent years, companies have achieved remarkable results using free email marketing tools. For instance, a startup used Mailchimp’s free plan to grow its subscriber base by 200% within six months, resulting in increased sales and customer engagement.

Future Trends in Email Marketing

It is clear that the future of email marketing is bright, with trends such as AI-driven personalization, interactive emails, and enhanced automation shaping the landscape. In order to meet these needs, free email marketing tools will continue to evolve.

Conclusion

If you are looking to establish your digital presence without a significant financial investment, free email marketing tools provide a valuable starting point. Using these tools effectively while staying within budget constraints is possible when businesses carefully evaluate and utilize them.

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