Veteran singer Anuradha Paudwal took to social media to reveal that she had been a victim of identity theft. Addressing her post to YouTube, she shared, “I’ve been a victim of identity theft on your platform for over a year now. Someone else has claimed my YouTube verification without my consent, and is operating a verified account under my name.  I’ve have been in contact [with] YouTube India, but [there has been] no resolution yet. Please, YouTube, help me regain control of my identity (sic)!”

Paudwal’s musician-daughter Kavita tells mid-day that while the unauthorised account had been active for a while, they hadn’t previously addressed the matter because such incidents are not unusual in the industry.

“This happens with all celebrities. But, it got to a point where an email address had been put up asking people to contact them for business. Then it obviously became problematic,” shares Kavita, adding that she has been in touch with the video-sharing platform that has been offering help.

“[YouTube] has a process to address this matter. If I want a profile [verified] on one [platform], they ask for [details of] another verified profile. It’s like a vicious circle. But, they are looking into it. We are hoping that they expedite the process. Basically, it can also [serve as] an example. If one person has received help, everybody else can be assured that if there’s an issue, things will be addressed.”

Amid reports of the growing number of cases of the illegal use of artificial intelligence, Kavita asserts that such matters should be dealt with, thoughtfully.

“This becomes the responsibility of the platform. The platform can’t simply say, ‘Okay, we made a platform, now it is your responsibility to take care of your profile.’ That doesn’t happen if the platform is also making money off people’s work. They need to have guidelines in place. I’m sure they’re also learning. They are taking [action].”