The actor in the viral music video condemning the 2024 Olympic Games bears a striking resemblance to French President Emmanuel Macron. However, the images of rats, garbage, and sewage were created with the help of artificial intelligence.
The video portraying Paris as a high-crime city and mocking the Olympics spread rapidly across social media platforms like YouTube and X, aided by 30,000 autonomous social media accounts linked to a notorious Russian disinformation group that has previously targeted France. Within days, the video was translated into 13 different languages with the help of artificial intelligence.
“Paris, Paris, 1-2-3, go and urinate in the Seine River,” mocks an AI-created character, while the fake actor resembling President Macron dances in the background. This seems to reference concerns about the quality of the Seine River water, where some swimming events of the Olympics are taking place.
Moscow is making its presence felt at the Paris Olympics through groups linked to the Russian government, which use online disinformation and state propaganda to spread claims aimed at inciting tension and violence, as well as attacking the host country.
Only a small number of Russian athletes have been allowed to compete in the Paris Olympics with neutral status. This response from the Kremlin was almost expected, following the ban on Russian athletes competing under their country’s flag after the invasion of Ukraine, says Gordon Crovitz, co-founder of “NewsGuard,” a firm that tracks online disinformation. This firm has documented dozens of examples of disinformation targeting the Paris Olympics, including the fake music video.
Russia’s Disinformation Campaign Targeting the Olympics Noted for Its Technical Prowess, Says Mr. Crovitz
“What is different now is that they are probably the most advanced users of malicious content creation models with the help of artificial intelligence, including fake videos, false music, and fake websites,” he says.
Artificial intelligence can be used to create photographs, audio recordings, and video footage, quickly translate texts, and produce content tailored to specific cultures, making it appear as if it was created by a human. Tasks that were once tedious, like creating fake social media accounts or websites and writing posts, can now be done faster and cheaper.
A video circulating this week claims that the American Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) and the U.S. Department of State have warned Americans not to use the Paris Metro. No such warning has been issued, and French authorities later confirmed that this video was created by a group linked to the Russian government, which likely used artificial intelligence.
Over the weekend, Kremlin-linked disinformation networks exploited the controversies surrounding Algerian-born boxer Imane Khelif, who faced unfounded questions about her gender. Boxer Khelif was identified as female at birth, but baseless claims that she is male or transgender emerged after a controversial boxing association with Russian ties alleged that she had not passed a suitability test before last year’s World Boxing Championship.
Russian Networks Amplify Debate, Quickly Becoming a Major Online Issue
Russian networks have amplified the debate, which quickly became one of the major issues online. British media, author J.K. Rowling, and far-right politicians like Donald Trump became part of the buzz. At its peak last week, the issue of the boxer saw tens of thousands of posts per hour from users on the social network X, according to an analysis by PeakMetrics, a company that investigates online theories.
The boxing association that initiated these claims—the International Boxing Association (IBA)—an organization permanently banned from participating in the Olympic Games, is led by a Russian official who is an ally of President Vladimir Putin, and its largest sponsor is the Russian state company Gazprom. Its decision to disqualify boxer Khelif last year, after she defeated a Russian boxer, is also being questioned.
Russian state media has spread fake news and misleading content. Instead of covering the Olympic events, most of the Russian media reports from Paris focus on crime, immigration, garbage, and pollution.
An article from the news agency “Sputnik” stated: “The Paris Games are undoubtedly going down the drain. Here’s an idea. Enough of giving the Olympic Games to the decayed, low-moral West.”
Russia has used propaganda to disparage previous Olympic Games, much like the Soviet Union did when it boycotted the 1984 Los Angeles Games. At that time, Moscow distributed materials to Olympic officials in Africa and Asia claiming that athletes who were not of white race would be attacked by racists in the United States. This was stated in an analysis by Microsoft Threat Intelligence, a unit within the tech giant Microsoft that studies individuals with malicious intents on the internet.
Russia has also conducted cyberattacks against previous Olympic Games.
“If they can’t participate or win in these games, then they make efforts to denigrate the international competitions in the minds of participants, spectators, and the global audience,” say analysts from Microsoft.
The Russian government did not respond to a request for comment on this issue on Monday.
French authorities have been on high alert for possible sabotage, cyberattacks, or fake news targeting the Games. A 40-year-old Russian man was arrested in France last month. He faces charges of working for a foreign power aimed at destabilizing the European country before the Olympic Games.
Other countries, criminal groups, and extremist organizations are also exploiting the Olympic Games to spread their false news. Any global event like the Olympic Games, environmental disasters, or even major elections that draws widespread attention online usually generates a large amount of fake news and fraud, says Mark Calandra, vice president of CSC Digital Brand Services, a company that monitors deceptive online activities.
Researchers at this firm have observed a significant increase in the registration of fake websites just before the start of the Olympic Games. In many cases, websites have been registered offering Olympic content or selling materials related to the Games.
However, these sites are actually created to collect information about website users. Sometimes it’s a scammer trying to steal personal financial data. In other cases, the sites are used by foreign governments to gather information on Americans or to further spread fake news.
“Bad actors exploit these global events,” said Mr. Calandra. “Whether they are positive events like the Olympic Games or more concerning, these people use the heightened awareness and interest of everyone to exploit them.”/VOA
