Experts ridiculed a deepfake amateur video of Vladimir Zelensky surrendering to Russia.
The video shows the Ukrainian president speaking from his pulpit, urging his troops to lay down their arms and surrender to Putin’s invading forces.
The deepfake was widely shared on Russian social media and was even hacked live in Ukraine and on a news site before being removed.
Experts ridiculed an amateur deepfake on the video of the surrender of Vladimir Zelensky to Russia
Internet users immediately noted the discrepancy between the skin tone on Zelensky’s neck and face, the strange emphasis on the video, and the pixelation around his head.
Ukraine 24, which was attacked by the trolls, said it was the work of “enemy hackers”.
While the clumsy attempt at disinformation is unlikely to fool anyone, it has raised concerns about a new front in the information war.
There are fears that Russia could flood social media with such videos in the hope of discrediting official information provided by Ukraine.
Nina Shik, author of Deepfakes, said the video looked like “an absolutely terrible face swap,” referring to programs that can digitally transplant one person’s face onto another’s body.
Internet users immediately noted the discrepancy between the skin tone on Zelensky’s neck and face.
Two weeks ago, Ukraine’s military intelligence service released a short video warning the country about the dangers of deepfakes, claiming the Kremlin was plotting a stunt involving them.
The Russian Embassy in Washington did not immediately respond to a message asking for comment.
Schick called Zelenskiy’s fake video “very rude” but warned it was only a matter of time before the technology became more widely available.
“Expect fakes like this to be easier to produce, while still looking very authentic,” she said.
Munir Ibrahim, who works for Truepic, a company that detects deepfakes on the Internet, told The Daily Beast: “The fact that this is so badly done is a bit confusing. You can clearly see the difference – it’s not the best deepfake we’ve seen, not even close.”
“As we start to see more and more cheap fakes, deepfakes are flooding the area, it desensitizes people and allows attackers to claim, ‘Nothing on earth is real, nothing can be trusted.
The Minister of Defense spoke for 10 minutes in Microsoft Teams with a man who introduced himself as Aleksey Goncharuk (right), who asked about British politics and eventually encouraged him to shout slogans.
Mr. Wallace, who exposed the hoax on Twitter this afternoon, said he had his suspicions and ended the call after “a few misleading questions.”
Zelenskiy reacted to a fake video in which he told his supporters: “We are protecting our land, our children, our families. So we’re not going to lay down our arms. Until our victory.
The move is part of a disinformation war in which Russia covers up its losses, claims Ukraine started the war, and commits atrocities against its own people.
On Thursday, Defense Secretary Ben Wallace lashed out at Russian “dirty tricks” after he and Home Secretary Priti Patel were targeted by an impostor posing as Ukraine’s prime minister.
The Minister of Defense spoke for 10 minutes in Microsoft Teams with a man who introduced himself as Aleksey Goncharuk, who asked about British politics and eventually encouraged him to shout slogans.
Mr. Wallace, who exposed the hoax in a tweet, said he had his suspicions and ended the call after “a few misleading questions.”
His confession was followed by a similar confession from Ms. Patel, who said she had been targeted earlier this week.
The level of sophistication of the prank convinced government sources that it was a Russian conspiracy.
The video call was arranged after an email purportedly sent by an aide to the Ukrainian embassy was forwarded to a government department and then forwarded to the Ministry of Defense.
The call was set up and Mr. Wallace was connected via Teams to the “Prime Minister of Ukraine”, who posed with the country’s flag on his back.
The Times reported that Mr. Wallace was asked about the chances of British warships escaping into the Black Sea and whether Ukraine should get nuclear weapons or join NATO.
Senior Defense Department sources fear that Moscow may try to piece together Wallace’s comments to embarrass him.
He ordered an immediate investigation to find out how the impostor was able to talk to him.
The defense minister said it was a “desperate attempt” but “no amount of Russian disinformation, distortions and dirty tricks” can detract from the human rights violations committed during the invasion of Ukraine by Vladimir Putin’s forces.