Deepfake Videos of Taiwanese Candidate Chen Su-yue Lead to Police Report
Deepfake videos using generative AI technology fabricated statements from Taiwanese Democratic Progressive Party candidate Chen Su-yue for Changhua County in a 2026 election campaign. The campaign reported the synthetic media to police after they were promoted via paid advertisements online, with investigators tracing some IP addresses to Taiwan.
What happened
Deepfake videos circulated on social media platforms depicting Democratic Progressive Party Changhua County long candidate Chen Su-yue using generative AI technology to fabricate conversations and statements she never made. The synthetic video used Chen's image from campaign billboards as an animated background and added AI-generated facial and voice synthesis to show her saying 'I can just lay back and win,' a statement the campaign denies she ever made.
The deepfake videos were reportedly promoted through paid online advertisements to accelerate their spread. Chen Su-yue's campaign headquarters reported the incident to Changhua County Police Department on 9 September 2026, with initial investigation showing that at least some IP addresses distributing the fabricated videos originated within Taiwan.
Reported impact
The campaign stated the deepfake videos intended to prevent Chen Su-yue from being elected and have affected the fairness of the election. The campaign requested that social media platforms remove the content within two days and vowed to identify the creators, distributors, and sources of funding behind the fabricated videos.
Index analysis
According to lawyers representing the campaign, Article 104 of Taiwan's Public Officials Election and Recall Act contains provisions punishing deepfake content. If the intent is to prevent a candidate's election through computer synthesis or AI deepfake methods used to produce or distribute false audio-visual content, penalties can reach seven years imprisonment; if profit motives are involved, sentences and fines can be enhanced to include fines up to 10 million New Taiwan dollars.
Governance controls
The Democratic Progressive Party Changhua County Branch filed a police report and requested removal of the videos from social media platforms. Campaign officials stated their goal was to identify the creators and distributors through digital forensics and trace the funding sources.
Classification
Sources and evidence
This record was researched and written by the Index, based on the following original reporting.