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AI-generated images claiming to portray Venezuela's president under arrest after his capture by the US have amassed many millions of impressions across the internet.

How Fake Pictures of the President Appeared Within Hours

The first inauthentic synthetic picture apparently displaying him led off a aircraft emerged within hours. This image was not shared any authoritative US channels; it was instead published on X by an profile describing itself as an “enthusiast of AI-generated art”.

We’ve checked the SynthID tool, confirming the image was generated or edited with Google AI.

More AI-generated visuals began to spread in the subsequent hours, appearing to show additional perspectives of Maduro under guard. Discernible watermarks on these pictures indicate they were posted by an Instagram account called ultravfx.

The detection tool confirms all of these images were likewise generated or edited generative models.

Real Photo Released but Fabrications Continued

The former US president released the genuine photograph of Nicolás Maduro restrained aboard the US Navy ship on Saturday morning. However, despite the authentic image was made public, synthetic pictures persisted online but were altered to include the grey athletic wear seen on Maduro.

Reverse image searches indicate these updated fakes were initially shared on the video platform by a graphic design profile. Again, the AI-watermark detector found these further images were created or altered AI tools.

Main Takeaways:

• AI-generated content circulated quickly after the news of Maduro's capture.
• The initial fabricated image was shared within hours on social media.
• Detection software like AI-watermark detectors helped to identify the images as AI-generated.
• Fake images continued to spread and be updated despite the release of real images.
• The origin of many fakes was traced to specific online accounts dedicated to graphic design.