Fake AI Videos Of Nigeria’s Influential Figures Fuel Social Media Swindle

Over the past year, there has been a surge in artificial intelligence (AI)-generated videos flooding social media platforms like Facebook, featuring doctored images and voices of some of Nigeria's most influential figures. These videos often advertise health products, exploiting the credibility of notable personalities to push false claims.

In one instance, a manipulated video featuring Nigerian Nobel laureate Wole Soyinka appeared on Facebook, promoting a hypertension medication. In the AI-generated video first dissected by The Cable and Code for Africa’s AAOSI programme, Soyinka is seen saying, “I have been struggling with high blood pressure for over 15 years,” a statement never made by him in reality.

The purpose of the video was simple: to leverage Soyinka’s authority and influence to sell a dubious drug. The prevalence of such videos is no longer a rarity, and they pose significant public risks by pushing unverified treatments, particularly for chronic conditions like hypertension and diabetes.

A similar situation arose when Samuel Achilefu, a renowned cancer researcher, was digitally manipulated in an AI-generated video. Known for inventing cancer goggles that assist surgeons in identifying malignant cells, Achilefu was shown endorsing a fake hypertension cure.

The video, shared by a Facebook page called Suhileaten, falsely attributed a statement to Achilefu, claiming, “I have cured thousands of people with cancer, and this year, we are going to end hypertension.” A reverse image search later revealed that the original footage was from a 2010 interview, but it was heavily altered with AI to fit the false narrative.