AI-Generated Deepfake Doctor Videos Used to Market Weight Loss Patches
Scammers created AI-generated deepfake videos of doctors purporting to be from Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust to fraudulently market weight loss patches on social media. The trust confirmed the videos were fraudulent and did not show actual staff members.
What happened
Fraudulent videos were circulated on social media platforms including Facebook and TikTok claiming that clinicians from Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust endorsed weight loss patches. The videos, which appear to be AI-generated, show doctors applying weight loss patches to their bodies and losing weight over a period of time, but do not show doctors who actually work at the trust.
A financial crime expert who investigated the adverts identified multiple red flags, including that a doctor profile photo originated from a Romanian bank advert, the Facebook profile had 1,000 followers entirely from Vietnam, and packaging shown in the video had a French flag despite claims the patches were made in the UK.
Reported impact
The trust's deputy chief medical officer stated that staff were actively working to get the videos taken down, describing them as fraudulent and misleading. The trust emphasized that NHS clinicians would never endorse or promote commercial products in this manner.
Index analysis
The videos used AI-generated deepfakes to impersonate NHS doctors in order to fraudulently market weight loss patches. The scam was designed to bypass consumers' rational response and persuade them to purchase products misrepresented as endorsed by medical professionals.
Governance controls
Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust issued a public alert about the fraudulent videos and took steps to have the content removed from social media platforms.
Classification
Sources and evidence
Sources not yet published
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