Exposing Venezuelan Victory Footage and AI-Generated Pictures of Nicolás Maduro.
Computer-created pictures claiming to show Venezuela's president in custody after his apprehension by the US have garnered tens of millions of impressions across the internet.
How Fake Pictures of Maduro Surfaced Within Hours
Initial fake AI image apparently displaying him taken off a plane emerged within hours. The picture was absent from any authoritative American sources; it was instead published on the platform X by an account describing itself as an “enthusiast of AI-generated art”.
Our analysis used the SynthID tool, which found the picture was created or altered with Google AI.
Further AI-generated pictures began to spread in the subsequent hours, purporting to present more angles of the leader under guard. Discernible identifying marks on these pictures reveal they were posted by an Instagram account named ultravfx.
AI analysis indicates these additional pictures were also generated or edited AI technology.
Real Photo Posted but Fakes Persisted
The former US president posted the initial authentic image of Maduro restrained aboard the USS Iwo Jima on that morning. But even after the authentic image was made public, AI-generated images persisted online but were updated to incorporate the grey tracksuit worn by Maduro.
Reverse image searches reveal these altered fabrications were first posted on the video platform by a graphic design account. Again, analysis says these further images were generated or edited Google AI.
Key Points:
- Synthetic media spread rapidly after the announcement of Maduro's capture.
- The initial fabricated image was shared on the same day on social media.
- Detection software like AI-watermark detectors were used to confirm the images as inauthentic.
- Fabrications persisted to spread and be updated despite the publication of authentic images.
- The origin of several fakes was traced to social media profiles focused on graphic design.
