AI-Generated Deepfake Ad of President Tinubu Promotes Fraudulent Investment Scheme
A deepfake video advertisement featuring President Bola Tinubu's likeness circulated on Facebook, falsely promoting investment in a Ponzi scheme without the President's authorisation or regulatory approval. Nigeria's advertising regulator ARCON confirmed the advertisement was AI-generated and designed to defraud Nigerians, launching an investigation and warning media platforms of potential sanctions.
What happened
A fake AI-generated advertisement featuring the image and video of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu circulated on Facebook, falsely promoting investment in a Ponzi scheme.
The advertisement was not submitted for vetting, did not receive approval from the Advertising Standards Panel, and was not authorised by President Tinubu or the Advertising Regulatory Council of Nigeria (ARCON).
Reported impact
The fraudulent advertisement was designed to mislead and defraud unsuspecting Nigerians, according to ARCON's preliminary investigation.
Index analysis
The advertisement was computer-generated with the intention to deceive members of the public into investing in a fraudulent scheme using the President's likeness without authorisation.
Governance controls
ARCON stated that the Federal Government's policy of pre-exposure vetting requires all advertisements to be decent, truthful, legal, socially responsible and devoid of misinformation, disinformation and unsubstantiated claims.
ARCON warned media owners, including traditional, digital, and social media platforms, that they are required by law to demand and obtain a vetting Certificate of Approval before exposing any advertisement targeted at the Nigerian market. Violations of Act No. 23 of 2022 will attract sanctions in accordance with the law.
Classification
Sources and evidence
This record was researched and written by the Index, based on the following original reporting.