Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy Surrenders to Russia in Shocking Deepfake Video

• Facebook has taken down a deepfake video on its platform that appeared to show Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy surrendering

• In the shocking video, the president urged his troops to surrender to invading Russian forces

• The video was doctored and Facebook says it was aimed at manipulating its users

Facebook has removed a deepfake video on its platform that depicted Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky ordering troops to surrender to Russian invaders.

Meta Head of Security Policy Nathaniel Gleicher disclosed that the video was removed from its video-sharing platform for breaking its rules against “manipulated media”.

The false video appears to show Zelenskyy addressing the nation and its military, encouraging citizens to “lay down arms”.

Asides from Facebook, the same video was posted on Twitter and Youtube, and it has garnered more than 120,000 views on the former.

Zelenskyy’s face and voice were edited onto the video using artificial intelligence (AI) and deep learning technology.

Read also: Ukraine Legalizes Cryptocurrency Despite Ongoing War

What are deepfake videos?

The term deepfake is gotten from the combination of “deep learning” and “fake”. It is used to describe false video and audio files that look very real.

These videos are usually made using AI technology and aim to show a person doing or saying something they did not.

Volodymyr Zelensky himself has since appeared in a video posted to an official Ukraine defense Twitter account reaffirming that he will continue to defend Ukraine and the country will not surrender.

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