Digital art fraud is becoming increasingly sophisticated, with AI playing a key role. AI can faithfully imitate artists’ styles, making it difficult to distinguish between original works and generated copies. One of the most notorious cases of digital art fraud is that of an NFT platform called “Evolved Apes.” The project, which promised to create a collection of digital art in the form of unique images of monkeys, turned out to be a scam when creators disappeared with approximately $2.7 million in NFT sales. Increasingly, fraudsters are using AI to create fake works and sell them as unique NFTs, misleading collectors and investors. Additionally, deepfakes can be used to manipulate provenance documentation, making digital works appear to be authentic works by famous artists. Blockchain-based technologies and AI algorithms to detect counterfeits are being developed to combat this type of fraud. Education about the risks associated with AI is essential for artists, galleries, and collectors to effectively protect themselves from digital fraud.
The European Union, to combat artificial intelligence (AI) fraud in digital art, has introduced the Artificial Intelligence Act (AI Act), the world’s first comprehensive regulation on AI, aimed at protecting human rights, preventing discrimination, and increasing transparency and user safety. In the context of digital art, the AI Act treats deepfake technology as an example of high-risk AI systems, subject to specific requirements and restrictions to protect against potential fraud. Education about the risks of AI is crucial for artists, collectors and galleries to recognise and minimise the risk of counterfeiting in digital art.
Project’s objectives can be described as:
- understanding the most common frauds in digital art,
- defining key skills and knowledge to combat fraud in digital art,
- by learning about the most high-profile cases of fraud in digital art, increasing awareness of this risk,
- developing guidelines and recommendations for the digital art market.
The above objectives will be implemented through a number of activities. The most important result of the project is the development of an e-learning course on the Moodle platform in the discussed scope, in a way that is understandable not only to art specialists but also to art consumers. To this end, it is necessary to first present the most common fraud mechanisms in digital art, develop and define key competences in this area (in accordance with the European Qualifications Framework) and develop guidelines and recommendations for target groups and other project stakeholders. The learning outcomes of the Moodle course will be compliant with ESCO.
E-learning course and the website will be available in multiple languages: English, German, Danish, Slovenian and Polish.
Our project brings together a diverse team of experts from the fields of art, education, technology, and innovation, united by a shared mission to combat digital art fraud:
- culturecore (Germany) – Project Leader
An experienced organisation in vocational education and cultural training, leading the project and ensuring high-quality learning outcomes tailored to the needs of the creative sector. - Media Dizajn (Poland) – Creative Industry & Innovation Partner
A non-profit organisation supporting creative industries through education, networking, and innovation, with strong experience in international collaboration.
- René Holm (Denmark) – Contemporary Artist & Art Expert
An internationally active artist contributing real-world insight into artistic practice, authenticity, and the challenges of detecting fraud in the digital art space.
- SPINAKER (Slovenia) – VET & Technology Specialist
A leading provider of vocational education and IT solutions, bringing expertise in e-learning development, artificial intelligence, and digital systems.
Together, we combine creative expertise, technological knowledge, and educational excellence to develop practical solutions that strengthen trust and security in the digital art ecosystem.