AI-Generated Deepfake Videos Spread Misinformation About Ukrainian Military Mobilization
AI-generated deepfake videos depicting crying Ukrainian soldiers were spread across social media in multiple languages, accumulating millions of views and spreading false claims about involuntary military mobilization. Fact-checkers identified the videos as AI-generated using the face of a Russian influencer and traced them to a deleted TikTok channel, with some videos watermarked with OpenAI's Sora video generation system.
What happened
Videos depicting young Ukrainian soldiers crying in military vehicles, claiming to be 23-year-old conscripts being sent to the front lines, were shared hundreds of times across social media platforms in multiple languages, accumulating millions of views.
Fact-checking investigation revealed the videos were AI-generated deepfakes using the face of Vladimir Yurievich Ivanov, a young Russian influencer from St. Petersburg who uses the online pseudonym Kussia88. Visual irregularities in the videos, such as poorly fitting helmets inconsistent with standard Ukrainian military equipment, indicated AI generation.
The videos originated from a since-deleted TikTok channel @fantomoko that published dozens of similar AI videos of purported Ukrainian soldiers. Some videos were watermarked with 'Sora,' OpenAI's image generation system. The most popular version appeared on a Hungarian X profile, where it was viewed more than 1.8 million times.
Reported impact
The videos spread the narrative that Ukraine was involuntarily mobilizing young men to compensate for battlefield losses due to the ongoing Russian invasion. The misinformation reached audiences across English, German, French, Italian, Spanish, Russian, and other languages.
Index analysis
The videos made a factually false claim that Ukrainian men as young as 23 were being conscripted and sent to battle. Ukraine's minimum mobilization age was lowered from 27 to 25 years in April 2024, but never to 23. Reverse image searches revealed the source was a known Russian influencer associated with neonazi symbolism in his online accounts.
Classification
Sources and evidence
This record was researched and written by the Index, based on the following original reporting.