Deepfake Video of Ladakh DGP Falsely Claims Activist's Arrest
A deepfake video falsely depicted Ladakh's police chief confirming that activist Sonam Wangchuk was arrested on the defence minister's orders. India's Press Information Bureau identified the video as AI-generated misinformation and urged the public to verify content before sharing.
What happened
A viral video circulated on social media purporting to show Ladakh Director General of Police S D Singh stating that activist Sonam Wangchuk was arrested on the orders of the defence minister.
The Press Information Bureau identified the video as a deepfake and confirmed that the DGP made no such statement.
Reported impact
The PIB warned the public to be cautious of AI-generated content intended to mislead and urged vigilance in verifying digital content before sharing to prevent the spread of misinformation.
Governance controls
The PIB Fact Check unit issued a public statement identifying the video as a digitally altered deepfake and clarified that the DGP made no such statement, without evidence presented.
Classification
Sources and evidence
This record was researched and written by the Index, based on the following original reporting.