Unmasking Venezuela Victory Footage and AI-Generated Pictures of Maduro.
Computer-created pictures claiming to depict Venezuela's president under arrest following his capture by the US have gained tens of millions of impressions across the internet.
How Fake Pictures of the President Appeared Rapidly
The first fabricated synthetic picture apparently showing him taken off a plane circulated shortly after. This image was absent from any official government accounts; it was instead published on X by an account describing itself as an “AI video art enthusiast”.
We’ve checked an AI-watermark detector, confirming the image was produced or modified with AI tools.
Further AI-generated pictures were disseminated in the subsequent hours, seemingly depicting additional perspectives of the leader detained. Visible watermarks on the graphics show they originated from an Instagram profile called ultravfx.
AI analysis confirms the further images were similarly produced using AI technology.
Real Photo Released but Fakes Continued
Donald Trump shared the genuine photograph of Maduro handcuffed aboard the USS Iwo Jima on that morning. Yet following this confirmation was published, AI-generated images continued to spread but were modified to include the gray sweatsuit worn by Maduro.
Digital forensics indicate these updated fakes were originally uploaded on the video platform by a digital art account. Once again, the AI-watermark detector confirms these further images were created or altered Google AI.
Important Facts:
- Deepfakes spread rapidly following the news of the president's apprehension.
- The initial fabricated picture appeared within hours on social media.
- Detection software like Google’s SynthID helped to identify the pictures as AI-generated.
- Fabrications continued to spread and be updated even after the publication of authentic photographs.
- The origin of several fabricated images was traced to specific online accounts dedicated to AI art.
