Debunking Venezuela Victory Videos and AI Images of Maduro.

AI-generated graphics purporting to depict Venezuela's president under arrest following his capture by the United States have gained countless of impressions on social media.

How Fake Pictures of the President Emerged Soon After

Initial fabricated AI image seemingly displaying him being escorted off a plane circulated within hours. This image was not shared any official US channels; it was instead posted on X by an account describing itself as an “AI video art enthusiast”.

We’ve checked Google’s SynthID, which found the image was created or altered with AI tools.

Additional synthetic visuals were disseminated in the following period, purporting to present additional perspectives of the leader in custody. Discernible logos on these images reveal they originated from an Instagram profile called ultravfx.

SynthID confirms all of these pictures were likewise produced using AI technology.

Real Photo Posted but Fabrications Persisted

Donald Trump shared the first real photo of Maduro handcuffed aboard the US Navy ship on that morning. Yet following this real photo was released, AI-generated images kept circulating but were modified to incorporate the grey tracksuit worn by Maduro.

Reverse image searches indicate these updated fakes were originally uploaded on TikTok by a digital art account. Once again, SynthID found these further images were produced with AI tools.

Key Points:

• Deepfakes spread rapidly following the announcement of the president's apprehension.
• The initial fabricated image was shared very quickly on social media.
• Detection software like AI-watermark detectors were used to verify the pictures as synthetic.
• Fabrications continued to spread and evolve even after the release of authentic photographs.
• The source of several fakes was linked to specific online accounts focused on AI art.