A fake photo of an explosion and a cloud of black smoke at the US Department of Defense Pentagon in Washington on Monday caused a stir in the online networks and even led to a brief slump in the stock markets.
The image, believed to be generated by artificial intelligence (AI), was shared by multiple user accounts on the internet services, forcing the US Department of Defense to comment. The original source of the fake image is unknown, it said.
“We can confirm that this is a hoax and that the Pentagon was not attacked today,” a spokesman said. The Arlington Fire Department near Washington also said on the Internet that there had been no explosion or other incident at or near the Pentagon.
Equity markets briefly plummeted
The wildly divisive picture sent stock markets tumbling for a few minutes, with the S&P 500 index falling 0.29 percent from Friday’s closing price before recovering. Pat O’Hare of market analysis website briefing.com explained that there was a dip that was likely related to the fake news. “But I would note that the magnitude of the decline was inconsistent with the apparently bad nature of the fake news.”
New AI technologies make it easier for laymen to produce convincing images in a short time and without specialist knowledge of image processing. In recent years, several fake recordings have sparked debate — such as an apparent arrest of former US President Donald Trump.
Source: Krone
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