Ukraine: a video war game at the start of a wave of disinformation – Companies
Soldiers clash in burning cities, warplanes are hit by missiles, drones dust tanks: these images seem larger than life, but in fact they are taken from war video games like Arma 3, which feed the flood of disinformation.
Clips from this game often have “Live” or “Breaking News” banners added to give it a more authentic look Fake videos depicting Russian aggression against Ukraine.
The fact that they easily fool the public, sometimes even television channels, worries researchers. It’s “a reminder of how easy it is to fool people,” Claire Wardle, director of Brown University’s Information Futures Lab, told AFP.
“With enhanced video game visuals, CGI can seem realistic at first glance“, he explains. “People need to know how to check the authenticity of these images, especially how to check the metadata, to avoid these mistakes, especially in the media.”
Arma 3 from the Czech studio Bohemia Interactive allows you to create different battle scenarios. through planes, tanks and various weapons. Many players then share videos of their adventures online, sometimes directed elsewhere. “Ukraine’s Counterattack!” from Arma 3 For example, one deluded internet user commented under his caption: “We should ask Ukraine to train NATO forces after this war.
“While it’s flattering that Arma 3 simulates modern conflict so realistically, We regret that this could be mistaken for actual combat footage and is being used as war propaganda,” a studio representative responded. For every unpublished video, ten more videos are uploaded every day.”
In recent years, Arma 3 footage has also been used to misrepresent the conflicts in Syria, Afghanistan and Palestine, fake news regularly condemned by the digital verification media. AFP has retweeted several, including one in November claiming it showed Russian tanks being hit by Javelin missiles, tens of thousands of times.
According to Bohemia Interactive, these provocations took place It gained popularity again with the invasion of Ukrainesometimes nicknamed the “first TikTok war” because of the many images showing it on social networks.
The media was also deceived: Romania’s Romanian TV channel released old Arma 3 footage of the fighting in Ukraine in November, and a former defense minister as well as a former intelligence chief both interpreted the footage as authentic.
Already in February, another Romanian channel, Antena 3, mistakenly broadcast an old Arma 3 video and invited the spokesman of the Ministry of Defense to analyze it. This will be limited to general notes on the conflict. There are various reasons for sharing these fake clips on social networks.
Nick Waters, of digital forensics website Bellingcat, told AFP: “I think the people posting this content are ‘trolls’ who want to see how many people they can fool.” Those who then share the posts are, he says, “naive people” trying to gain visibility or subscribers. “.
Given that the disinformation based on extracts from Arma 3 is not advanced, researchers say it cannot come from state actors. It’s easier for them to verify these clips than “deepfakes” (or “hyperfakes”), which use artificial intelligence to create confusingly realistic images that are increasingly used in the criminal world.
“If you know what to expect, it’s actually not that hard to identify these (Arma 3) videos as fake,” adds Nick Waters. Unfortunately, he laments, “a lot of people don’t have the skills” to spot misinformation.
Clips from this game, often accompanied by “Live” or “Breaking News” banners to make them seem more authentic, are often used in fake videos depicting Russian aggression in Ukraine. , sometimes even television channels disturb researchers. It’s “a reminder of how easy it is to fool people,” Claire Wardle, director of Brown University’s Information Futures Lab, told AFP. “With improvements to video game visuals, CGI can look realistic at first glance,” he explains. “People need to know how to verify the authenticity of these images, especially the metadata, so that these mistakes are not made, especially in the media.” create different battle scenarios using planes, tanks and different weapons. Many players then share videos of their adventures online, sometimes directed elsewhere. “Ukraine’s Counterattack!” from Arma 3 For example, one deluded internet user commented under his caption: “We should ask Ukraine to train NATO forces after this war. “While we are flattered that Arma 3 is such a realistic simulation of modern conflicts, we are saddened that it is being mistaken for real combat images and used as war propaganda,” a studio representative said. “We are trying to fight this content by reporting it to the platforms, but it is not effective at all. For every unpublished video, ten more videos are uploaded every day,” he said. In recent years, Arma 3 footage has also been used to misrepresent the conflicts in Syria, Afghanistan and Palestine, fake news regularly condemned by the digital verification media. AFP has retweeted several, including one in November claiming it showed Russian tanks being hit by Javelin missiles, tens of thousands of times. According to Bohemia Interactive, these hijackings gained popularity again with the invasion of Ukraine, sometimes called the “first TikTok war” due to the many images showing it on social media. The media was also fooled: Romanian channel Romania TV Arma 3 released an old video showing the fighting in Ukraine in November, and a former defense minister as well as a former intelligence chief both interpreted the footage as authentic. Already in February, another Romanian channel, Antena 3, mistakenly broadcast an old Arma 3 video and invited the spokesman of the Ministry of Defense to analyze it. This will be limited to general notes on the conflict. There are various reasons for sharing these fake clips on social networks. Nick Waters, of digital forensics website Bellingcat, told AFP: “I think the people posting this content are ‘trolls’ who want to see how many people they can fool.” Those who then share the posts are, he says, “naive people” trying to gain visibility or subscribers. “Given the unsophisticated nature of the disinformation based on the Arma 3 excerpts, it is unlikely to come from state actors, the researchers say. For them, checking these clips is a method that involves the use of artificial intelligence to create disturbingly realistic images that are increasingly used in the criminal world.” easier than deepfakes” (or “hyperfakes”). “If you know what to expect, it’s actually not that hard to tell that these (Arma 3) videos are fake,” adds Nick Waters. Unfortunately, he regrets that the misinformation “many people don’t have the skills” to detect.
