Exposing Venezuela Victory Videos and AI-Generated Pictures of Nicolás Maduro.
AI-generated pictures claiming to depict Venezuela's president detained following his apprehension by the United States have gained tens of millions of impressions on social media.
How AI Images of Maduro Emerged Soon After
Initial fabricated AI image seemingly displaying him taken off a plane surfaced shortly after. This image was not shared any authoritative government accounts; it was instead uploaded on the platform X by an account purporting to be an “AI video art enthusiast”.
We’ve checked Google’s SynthID, which found the picture was generated or edited with AI tools.
Additional synthetic pictures started circulating in the ensuing hours, appearing to show more angles of the leader detained. Noticeable identifying marks on these pictures reveal they originated from an Instagram account named ultravfx.
AI analysis indicates these additional images were also created or altered Google AI.
Authentic Image Posted but Fabrications Persisted
The former US president released the genuine photograph of Nicolás Maduro handcuffed aboard the USS Iwo Jima on Saturday morning. Yet following the authentic image was made public, AI-generated pictures continued to spread but were altered to include the grey athletic wear worn by Maduro.
Digital forensics reveal these updated fakes were originally uploaded on the video platform by a digital art profile. Similarly, analysis confirms these further images were generated or edited AI tools.
Key Points:
- Synthetic media gained traction after the events of the president's apprehension.
- The initial fabricated image was shared on the same day on social media.
- Tools like AI-watermark detectors helped to identify the images as inauthentic.
- Fake images continued to spread and be updated even after the release of real photographs.
- The source of many fabricated images was traced to social media accounts focused on AI art.
