Unmasking Venezuelan Celebration Videos and AI Images of Maduro.
Computer-created graphics purporting to portray Venezuela's president in custody after his apprehension by the American authorities have amassed tens of millions of views online.
The Way AI Images of the President Appeared Within Hours
The first inauthentic AI image apparently displaying him taken off a plane surfaced shortly after. The picture was unpublished by any verified American sources; rather, it was posted on X by an account purporting to be an “AI video art enthusiast”.
Verification involved Google’s SynthID, which found the picture was generated or edited with AI tools.
Further AI-generated visuals started circulating in the ensuing period, purporting to present more angles of the leader in custody. Discernible logos on these images show they originated from an Instagram profile named ultravfx.
SynthID confirms all of these images were similarly generated or edited AI technology.
Real Photo Posted but Fakes Persisted
The former US president released the initial authentic image of Maduro in handcuffs aboard the US Navy ship on Saturday morning. However, despite this real photo was published, synthetic images persisted online but were updated to incorporate the grey tracksuit seen on Maduro.
Reverse image searches show the new fake images were originally uploaded on the video platform by a digital art profile. Once again, SynthID found the new graphics were generated or edited AI tools.
Key Points:
- AI-generated content spread rapidly following the news of Maduro's capture.
- The first fake picture was shared very quickly on platform X.
- Tools like AI-watermark detectors helped to confirm the pictures as synthetic.
- Fabrications continued to spread and be updated even after the publication of real images.
- The origin of many fabricated images was traced to specific online profiles focused on graphic design.
