Fake is at the same time a generic term in Internet jargon and a strategy in artistic and activist interventions based on identity theft, hoax and other kinds of momentary confusion in a mass-mediated public sphere. In this article a more accurate definition of fake will be proposed according to three main principles: in the first place, the artistic and activist fake is not just a forgery, but a mechanism to subvert the functioning of discursive frames; secondly, it sets out to provoke symbolic conflict within a specific social and political context; and finally, its nature is intertwined with the historical and social conditions of use of communication technologies. This last issue will allow to sketch a new challenge: defining a possible evolution path of fake in the age of social media and big data.