A wild fire situation has been spreading for almost a week now in the state of California in the United States of America. While the attention of the whole world was focused on it, we noticed that there are few misleading social media posts circulating among the social media users in Sri Lanka. This is an examination of the facts that we are doing in this regard.
Social media posts
Due to the forest fire situation in the United States of America, a video showing how the entire area of Los Angeles is on fire was spread on social networks as follows.
Also, a video showing how firefighters rescue animals from the fire was circulated as follows.
We decided to do a fact check regarding this.
Fact Check
Since January 7, the areas around the city of Los Angeles in the states of California in the United States of America have been facing a massive forest fire situation like never before. You can read here an examination of the facts that we have done, paying careful attention for the damage caused by the fire, obstacles to the efforts taken to control the fire, the root causes and the effects of climate change.
First video
First, we looked at the video showing the spread of the forest fire.
When this video is divided into frames, it can be seen that it is made up of 6 different video parts.
The first footage shown is a road with kind of coconut trees leading to a burning mountain area. The second frame shows vehicles parked between road signs while the sky is full of flames. The third frame shows a burning city seen from the sky. The fourth frame shows roads and buildings on fire. The fifth picture shows a mountainous area engulfed in fire and the sixth frame shows a burning city and a red sky.
At a glance, some scenes here show the properties found in videos created with artificial intelligence, and we have examined each frame through several AI Detection software.
When a software called Wasit AI detection is used, it can be seen that there is a possibility that the above frames are created using AI. That information is below.
Also, when we use the Hive Moderation AI detection tool, which we often use to check AI-related design, it is seen that these are made with artificial intelligence.
When questioned through IS It AI, it can be seen that everything is created using artificial intelligence. Analytical reports in this regard can be accessed here and here.
Second video
After that we inquired about the video showing saving animals caught in the fire.
Accordingly, we have sent a video sequence to the Wasit AI detection tool.
Also, through other such software, it was seen that these scenes were created using AL.
Accordingly, it is clear that the video showing animals being rescued from the wildfires are mostly made using Artificial Intelligence.
Even without the use of an AI detection tool, it can be recognized that such videos have been created using AI with these features,
- The nature of people’s fingers appears uneven of distorted
- Unnatural sharp color patterns
- Blurred colors in the background
- Too bright background color patterns etc.
Also, it can be identified that the images shown in these videos are artificially created by the inclusion of unrealistic images such as the footage of the whole city burning at once.
Also, in the first few days of the fire, the fire occurred at the place where the name ‘Hollywood’ is showcased, was demonstrated through AI images. Below is an investigation we did regarding that.
AI Images Go Viral As Iconic Hollywood Sign On Fire
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Conclusion
Through our investigation, it is confirmed that there is a real fire situation in California, but some of the pictures and videos that are spreading on social networks regarding it are digitally edited using Artificial Intelligence in a misleading way.
Title:Unbelievable photos and videos circulating linking to the California wildfires !
Fact Check By: Fact Crescendo TeamResult: Misleading
