Impersonator
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Animpersonatoris someone who imitates or copies the behavior or actions of another.[1]There are many reasons for impersonating someone:
- Living history:After close study of some historical figure, a performer may dress and speak "as" that person for an audience. Such historical interpretation may be a scripted dramatic performance likeMark Twain Tonight!or an unscripted interaction while staying in character.[2]
- Entertainment: An "impressionist"impersonates well-known figures in order to entertain an audience. Especially popular objects of impersonation areElvis Presley(seeElvis impersonator),Michael Jackson(seeMichael Jackson impersonator) andMadonna(seeMadonna impersonator). Other uses of impersonation for entertainment include maledrag queens(previously called "female impersonators",although this terminology is now considered outdated.)
- Crime: As part of acriminal actsuch asidentity theft.This is usually where the criminal is trying to assume the identity of another, in order to commitfraud,such as accessing confidential information, or to gain property not belonging to them. Also known associal engineeringandimpostors.
- Decoys,used as a form of protection for political and military figures. This involves an impersonator who is employed (or forced) to perform during public appearances, to mislead observers.
- Sowing discord, causing people to fight, or dislike each other for social, business or political gain.
Celebrity impersonators[edit]
Celebrity impersonatorsare impostors who look similar tocelebritiesand dress in such a way as to imitate them. Impersonators are known as sound-alikes, look-alikes, impressionists, imitators tribute artists and wannabees. The interest may have originated with the need or desire to see a celebrity who has died.[citation needed]One of the most prominent examples of this phenomenon is the case ofElvis Presley. Edward Mosshas appeared in movies and sitcoms, impersonatingMichael Jackson.[3][4]Tom Joneshas attracted his share ofimpersonatorsfrom different places around the world. From the United States, to South East Asia, to the UK, there are performers who either sound like him or imitate his act.[5][6][7][8]
Criminal impersonation[edit]
In England and Wales, thePoor Law Amendment Act 1851,section 3, made it an offence to impersonate a "person entitled to vote" at an election. In the case of Whiteley v Chappell (1868), theliteral ruleofstatutory interpretationwas employed to find that a dead person was not a "person entitled to vote" and consequently a person accused of this offence wasacquitted.[9]
Although in aColoradocase, an immigrant was charged with "criminal impersonation" for using another person'sSocial Security numberwhen signing up for a job,[citation needed]some courts have ruled that supplying this wrong information may not be criminal.[10]The ruling hinges on whether there was harm to the other person.[citation needed]
Impersonation using Deepfake[edit]
Audio deepfakeshave been used as part ofsocial engineeringscams, fooling people into thinking they are receiving instructions from a trusted individual.[11]In 2019, a U.K.-based energy firm's CEO was scammed over the phone when he was ordered to transfer €220,000 into a Hungarian bank account by an individual who used audio deepfake technology to impersonate the voice of the firm's parent company's chief executive.[12]
As of 2023, the combination advances in deepfake technology, which could clone an individual's voice from a recording of a few seconds to a minute, and newtext generation tools,enabled automated impersonation scams, targeting victims using a convincing digital clone of a friend or relative.[13]
See also[edit]
- Impressionist
- Look-alike
- Personation
- Police impersonation
- Shi (personator),in the Chinese ancestor ritual: a figure impersonating ancestors
- Soundboard,victim soundboard
- Tribute act
- Wannabe
- Identity fraud
- Identity theft
References[edit]
- ^"Impersonator".The Free Dictionary.Retrieved2010-01-03.
- ^"Town of the Living Dead".LA Review of Books. 15 October 2013.Retrieved17 December2023.
He is a Ralph Waldo Emerson reenactor. This man gets paid to dress like, act like, and speak like Ralph Waldo Emerson. He's 63 years old and wears a black frock coat...'I use the term 'historic interpreter' or 'living historian.' But when people say 'impersonator,' that doesn't bother me.'
- ^Baker, Bob (3 March 2005)."King of Pop impersonator star of E! trial re-enactment".The Seattle Times.Archived fromthe originalon 9 July 2009.
- ^John, Alex."Damn Salvatore Rule".Retrieved13 August2021.
- ^"Column: Golden Knights give Vegas a real sense of community".Los Angeles Times.2018-04-12.Retrieved2024-03-19.
- ^Billboard,9 May 1998 -Page 60 Newsmakers,Now The Real Thing.
- ^MICHAEL, STUART."Warren makes time for grandson".The Star.Retrieved2024-03-19.
- ^"Stars shine for Sam Sorono at hospice fundraiser - VIDEO - The Star".2018-04-19. Archived fromthe originalon 2018-04-19.
- ^TheLaw Commissionand theScottish Law Commission,The Interpretation of Statutes,footnote 66, page 18, published 9 June 1969, accessed 17 December 2022
- ^"Using false S.S. number not impersonation".UPI. October 28, 2010.
- ^Statt, Nick (5 Sep 2019)."Thieves are now using AI deepfakes to trick companies into sending them money".Archivedfrom the original on 15 September 2019.Retrieved13 Sep2019.
- ^Damiani, Jesse."A Voice Deepfake Was Used To Scam A CEO Out Of $243,000".Forbes.Archivedfrom the original on 14 September 2019.Retrieved2019-11-09.
- ^Schwartz, Christopher; Wright, Matthew (17 March 2023)."Voice deepfakes are calling – here's what they are and how to avoid getting scammed".The Conversation.
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