No single forensic signal reliably catches every deepfake technique, so a laboratory ensemble combines independent methods and votes.
verdict = fraction_flagging > consensus_threshold
each method independent forensic signal
- Forensic methods — independent detection techniques (frequency artifacts, physiological signals, lighting physics).
- Ensemble connectivity — how much each method's verdict is cross-weighted against the others.
- Manipulation complexity — sophistication of the underlying deepfake generation technique being tested.
- Ensemble consensus threshold — agreement level required across methods before the lab issues a final verdict.
Forensic labs deliberately combine unrelated detection signals — a generator that fools one method rarely fools all of them simultaneously.