Researchers warn 2026 will bring deepfakes that routinely fool nonexpert viewers and voice clones indistinguishable from real speakers, escalating fraud and disinformation risks on campuses and in admissions processes. New York Assemblymember Alex Bores urged widespread adoption of cryptographic provenance standards (C2PA) to tag legitimate media—arguing a technical fix akin to HTTPS could make provenance the norm. Universities and research offices should prepare integrity controls for media used in teaching, publications, and outreach, and consider policy mandates for provenance on institutional content.