This video was shared on social media but has since been removed from the platforms.
Hackers spread deepfake
The distribution of the video appears to be the work of hackers. Ukraine 24, a news channel, notes on its Facebook page that they were the target of a hacker attack, resulting in the video being published under their name.
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“The running line of the TV channel “Ukraine 24” and the website “Segodnya” were hacked by enemy hackers and spread Zelensky's message about the alleged “surrender.”
Facebook: “Ukraine 24”, March 16, 2022
❗️❗️❗️ THIS IS WRONG!
FAKE! Friends, we have repeatedly warned about this. Nobody will give up. Especially in the circumstances when the Russian army is suffering losses in battles with the Ukrainian army!”
Twitter user Mikael Thalen points out the deepfake:
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In another tweet, also explains the connection between the deepfake video and the hack of Ukraine 24 and Segodnya: “To clarify: Zelenskyj’s deepfake appeared on the Segodnya news website during a live broadcast from Ukraine 24 in one “The ticker at the bottom of the screen contained text that referenced Zelensky’s fake surrender.”
Zelensky's reaction
The Ukrainian president quickly responded to the fake video, emphasizing that surrender was only an option for Russian soldiers: “If I can offer anyone to lay down their arms, it is the Russian military: Go home, because we are home . We defend our country, our children and our families.”
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Strikingly bad deepfake
In the fake video, it is noticeable that Zelenskyj's head does not seem to fit completely on the body; the edges around the head appeared pixelated. The pronunciation is also said to have been strikingly different.
Already on March 2nd, the Ukrainian Center for Strategic Communications warned of possible deepfakes.
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“You can see Volodymyr Zelensky on TV making a surrender statement.
Facebook: Ukrainian Center for Strategic Communications, March 2, 2022
You see it, you hear it - so it's true. But that is not true. This technology is a deepfake. It will not be a real video but created by machine learning algorithms.
Videos created using these technologies cannot even be distinguished from real videos.
Know – it’s a fake!
Their goal is to confuse people, create panic, anger them, and trick our troops into surrender. Rest assured – Ukraine will not surrender!
“Russia just needs to achieve a fake victory, shut down the Internet and all contacts with the outside world.”
Meta deleted fake video from its platforms
Social media operators have reacted and removed the deepfake video from all sites, as Nathaniel Gleicher from Meta announced on Twitter.
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Conclusion
Volodymyr Zelensky did not call for surrender. This video was a deepfake.
Due to violations of user guidelines on social media platforms, the fake video has now been removed.
You might also be interested in: Deepfake: Putin did not announce Russia's surrender
Source: Snopes , TechCrunch , DailyDot
Notes:
1) This content reflects the current state of affairs at the time of publication. The reproduction of individual images, screenshots, embeds or video sequences serves to discuss the topic. 2) Individual contributions were created through the use of machine assistance and were carefully checked by the Mimikama editorial team before publication. ( Reason )