China's new challenge as natural disasters strike - fake AI videos

In some areas, videos containing false information about power outages prompted residents to panic buy emergency supplies. Flooding in Hengzhou city, Guangxi in early July caused hundreds of snakes to escape from a breeding farm.

Then fake images were also published showing crocodiles being released into a river. In an already tense and dangerous situation involving mass evacuations and complex rescue operations, authorities want to avoid panic.

What Happened

Now they fear that AI technology - which China is pouring billions of dollars into - is providing simple, accessible tools that can be used to trick the public. Many of these content creators use disaster news to try to gain followers.

• In 2017, it announced that AI would be "the main driving force" of the country's progress.

• The state-controlled wire service Xinhua reports that the country has over 6,000 "AI companies".

• In 2021, local officials were arrested, accused of concealing or underreporting 139 deaths in Henan province.

Key Details

In recent weeks, there have been arrests and punishment – ranging from detention awaiting criminal prosecution to fines – for the creation of bogus reports and video content. But experts are warning that an unprecedented crisis of misinformation could be looming.

• Incidents like these have resulted in a trust vacuum that has made it much easier for bad actors to spread fake content.

• Fatal Typhoon Maysak floods burst dam wall in ChinaAnd this is not an isolated incident.

• Water bursting through the broken dam led to at least 26 deaths downstream.

Why It Matters

Individuals no longer require sophisticated technical skills. There have been calls for all AI-generated content to be clearly stamped but other users can then just re-edit the material removing the markings.

• Officials appeared to be trying to make the breach sound less alarming but the consequences were deadly.

• Earlier in July, local journalists were asked to "soften" their language to describe a major breach in the wall of the Liulan Dam near Naning as an "opening" or "gap".

What Reports Say

Coverage of the story so far points to:

• Continued reporting by BBC as more details emerge