Unmasking Venezuelan Victory Videos and AI-Generated Pictures of Nicolás Maduro.
Synthetic images purporting to show Venezuela's president in custody following his apprehension by the US have gained tens of millions of impressions on social media.
How AI Images of the President Appeared Soon After
Initial fake AI image apparently showing him taken off a aircraft circulated a brief time later. The graphic was not shared any verified American sources; it was instead published on X by an profile describing itself as an “AI video art enthusiast”.
We’ve checked an AI-watermark detector, which found the picture was created or altered with generative AI.
More AI-generated visuals started circulating in the following period, appearing to show more angles of Maduro detained. Noticeable watermarks on the graphics reveal they came from an Instagram account named ultravfx.
The detection tool indicates all of these images were likewise created or altered generative models.
Authentic Image Released but Fakes Continued
Donald Trump posted the genuine photograph of Maduro in handcuffs aboard the USS Iwo Jima on that morning. Yet following the authentic image was made public, AI-generated pictures kept circulating but were updated to incorporate the grey athletic wear worn by Maduro.
Reverse image searches show these updated fakes were initially shared on the video platform by a digital art profile. Once again, analysis found these subsequent pictures were produced with Google AI.
Main Takeaways:
- AI-generated content spread rapidly following the announcement of the president's apprehension.
- The first fake image was shared within hours on platform X.
- Detection software like Google’s SynthID helped to identify the images as synthetic.
- Fabrications continued to spread and be updated despite the publication of authentic photographs.
- The source of several fakes was traced to social media accounts focused on AI art.
