Viswa Chaitanya Marella

Identifying images generated by Generative Adversarial Networks (GANs) has become a significant challenge in digital image forensics. This research presents a wavelet-based detection method that uses discrete wavelet transform (DWT) preprocessing and a ResNet50 classification layer to differentiate the StyleGAN-generated images from real ones. Haar and Daubechies wavelet filters are applied to convert the input images into multi-resolution representations, which will then be fed to a ResNet50 network for classification, capitalizing on subtle artifacts left by the generative process. Moreover, the wavelet-based models are compared to an identical ResNet50 model trained on spatial data. The Haar and Daubechies preprocessed models achieved a greater accuracy of 93.8 percent and 95.1 percent, much higher than the model developed in the spatial domain (accuracy rate of 81.5 percent). The Daubechies-based model outperforms Haar, showing that adding layers of descriptive frequency patterns can lead to even greater distinguishing power. These results indicate that the GAN-generated images have unique wavelet-domain artifacts or "fingerprints." The method proposed illustrates the effectiveness of wavelet-domain analysis to detect GAN images and emphasizes the potential of further developing the capabilities of future deepfake detection systems.

Federated Learning (FL) allows multiple institutions to cooperatively train machine learning models while retaining sensitive data at the source, which has great utility in privacy-sensitive environments. However, FL systems remain vulnerable to membership-inference attacks and data heterogeneity. This paper presents FedOnco-Bench, a reproducible benchmark for privacy-aware FL using synthetic oncologic CT scans with tumor annotations. It evaluates segmentation performance and privacy leakage across FL methods: FedAvg, FedProx, FedBN, and FedAvg with DP-SGD. Results show a distinct trade-off between privacy and utility: FedAvg is high performance (Dice around 0.85) with more privacy leakage (attack AUC about 0.72), while DP-SGD provides a higher level of privacy (AUC around 0.25) at the cost of accuracy (Dice about 0.79). FedProx and FedBN offer balanced performance under heterogeneous data, especially with non-identical distributed client data. FedOnco-Bench serves as a standardized, open-source platform for benchmarking and developing privacy-preserving FL methods for medical image segmentation.

The rapid rise of photorealistic images produced from Generative Adversarial Networks (GANs) poses a serious challenge for image forensics and industrial systems requiring reliable content authenticity. This paper uses frequency-domain analysis combined with deep learning to solve the problem of distinguishing StyleGAN-generated images from real ones. Specifically, a two-dimensional Discrete Fourier Transform (2D DFT) was applied to transform images into the Fourier domain, where subtle periodic artifacts become detectable. A ResNet50 neural network is trained on these transformed images to differentiate between real and synthetic ones. The experiments demonstrate that the frequency-domain model achieves a 92.8 percent and an AUC of 0.95, significantly outperforming the equivalent model trained on raw spatial-domain images. These results indicate that the GAN-generated images have unique frequency-domain signatures or "fingerprints". The method proposed highlights the industrial potential of combining signal processing techniques and deep learning to enhance digital forensics and strengthen the trustworthiness of industrial AI systems.

Artificial Intelligence's dual-use nature is revolutionizing the cybersecurity landscape, introducing new threats across four main categories: deepfakes and synthetic media, adversarial AI attacks, automated malware, and AI-powered social engineering. This paper aims to analyze emerging risks, attack mechanisms, and defense shortcomings related to AI in cybersecurity. We introduce a comparative taxonomy connecting AI capabilities with threat modalities and defenses, review over 70 academic and industry references, and identify impactful opportunities for research, such as hybrid detection pipelines and benchmarking frameworks. The paper is structured thematically by threat type, with each section addressing technical context, real-world incidents, legal frameworks, and countermeasures. Our findings emphasize the urgency for explainable, interdisciplinary, and regulatory-compliant AI defense systems to maintain trust and security in digital ecosystems.