Exposing Venezuelan Victory Videos and AI-Generated Pictures of Maduro.
AI-generated images purporting to portray Venezuela's president in custody after his capture by the United States have gained countless of views on social media.
How AI Images of the President Appeared Rapidly
Initial inauthentic AI image seemingly displaying him taken off a aircraft surfaced within hours. The picture was absent from any verified US channels; rather, it was posted on the platform X by an account purporting to be an “enthusiast of AI-generated art”.
We’ve checked the SynthID tool, determining the image was created or altered with generative AI.
Further synthetic visuals began to spread in the following period, purporting to present additional perspectives of the leader under guard. Discernible identifying marks on the graphics indicate they originated from an Instagram profile named ultravfx.
AI analysis indicates all of these images were also generated or edited Google AI.
Real Photo Posted but Fabrications Persisted
The former US president released the genuine photograph of Nicolás Maduro restrained aboard the US Navy ship on that morning. But even after this confirmation was made public, AI-generated pictures persisted online but were altered to show the grey tracksuit worn by Maduro.
Reverse image searches show the new fake images were initially shared on the video platform by a graphic design profile. Again, SynthID confirms these further images were generated or edited generative artificial intelligence.
Main Takeaways:
- Synthetic media circulated quickly after the announcement of Maduro's capture.
- The initial fabricated picture appeared very quickly on social media.
- Tools like Google’s SynthID were used to confirm the images as synthetic.
- Fabrications continued to circulate and evolve despite the publication of authentic photographs.
- The origin of many fakes was traced to social media profiles dedicated to AI art.
