A Chinese who posted videos on social media gathered hundreds of thousands of followers and sold Russian goods by simulating fighting in Ukraine, creating videos using artificial intelligence (AI).
Bald and with a thick beard, the man identified by the pseudonym Baoer Kechatie presented himself as a soldier of Chechnya’s special forces stationed on the front lines.
“Prior to the ban, the account owner had removed all videos and changed his account name from ‘Baoer Kechatie’, which resembles the protagonist Pavel Korchagin from the Russian novel How the Steel Was Tempered, to Wang Kangmei, which translates as ‘resisting the USA” https://t.co/hwNdttqX1O pic.twitter.com/uEfnc3PfhU
—Alan Smithee (@AlanSmithee1987) June 22, 2023
In one of the videos, where he appears in front of what he says is a “nuclear power plant,” he proclaims that the Russian army has just taken the area. In another, he claims he just fought US Marines and shows off a gun.
However, the thick accent from Henan province, in central China, cast doubts on the veracity of the content. Users of Douyin, the Chinese version of the short video-sharing application TikTok, discovered that Baoer Kechatie’s Internet Protocol (IP) address was exactly in Henan.
The account grew to 400,000 followers and sold at least 210 products, including Russian vodka and honey, through an associated e-commerce store.
In a statement released this weekend, Douyin said it suspended the account indefinitely for “spreading misinformation”.
Before being banned, the account owner deleted all videos and changed the pseudonym from “Baoer Kechatie” to Wang Kangmei, which translates as “Resistance to the United States”.
In China, the use of false identities among content creators is on the rise as AI tools for manipulating video and audio improve.
Last year, a woman who identified herself as Nana and of Russian descent went viral for sharing moments from her life in China, but was eventually exposed as an imposter who transformed her appearance using AI-powered filters. The account had nearly two million followers.
In January, China began criminalizing the publication and transmission of videos and audio edited through artificial intelligence and virtual reality (‘deepfakes’) that have not been identified as such.
“With the adoption of new technologies such as ‘deepfakes’ in the video and audio industry, the use of content that can disrupt public order and violate the interests of the population poses a risk, causing political problems and negative consequences for national security and social stability,” emphasized China’s Cyberspace Administration.
Measures include requiring you to set up a real name verification system when creating an account.
Since May, Douyin has required all users to clearly label AI-generated content.
Source: DN
