Russia Manipulated a Zelenskyy video into stating citizens should “lay down arms”
Zelenskyy’s (The President of Ukraine) face and voice have been edited into a video using AI to create a “deepfake” video. A word Mathew Holroyd and Fola Olorunselu used in Euro news yesterday. “This is the first deepfake that we’ve seen used in an intentional and broadly deceptive way,” said Sam Gregory, program director at Witness, a human rights and technology group. Earlier this month, Ukraine’s land forces warned citizens to be aware of fake videos being circulated, however,“Videos made through such technologies are almost impossible to distinguish from the real ones,” the authory said in a Facebook post.
A manipulated video of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy calling on citizens to surrender to Russia has been shared online. The false video appears to show Zelenskyy addressing the nation and encouraging citizens to "lay down arms". One version of the "deepfake" was viewed more than 120,000 times on Twitter. Zelenskyy's face and voice have been edited onto the video using artificial intelligence (AI) to create the deepfake video. The viral clip differs from the majority of misinformation that has been shared since Russia invaded Ukraine on February 24. Most false rumours originate from images or videos that have been taken out of context, from other wars or world events. "[The] goal is to disorient, sow panic, disbelieve citizens and incite our troops to retreat. Rest assured - Ukraine will not capitulate." On Wednesday, Ukraine's President swiftly released a video on his own Instagram page, where he denied making any such statement. "The only ones who should give up arms are Russian soldiers,” Zelenskyy said. A deepfake video of Russian President Vladimir Putin also appeared online on Wednesday, seemingly created in retaliation to the fake Zelenskyy clip. One version on Twitter had more 50,000 views in the video, the Russian president appears to announce the surrender of Russia and calls on soldiers to "go home while you're alive".