As Hurricane Melissa continues to slam into Jamaica and the Caribbean, fake videos of the destruction being caused by the Category 5 storm are circulating across the internet
Fake videos fabricating the destruction caused by Hurricane Melissa have spread across the internet. It comes as the Caribbean is hit with one of the strongest hurricanes in decades.
Hurricane Melissa is currently making landfall across Jamaica, causing untold levels of damage in a storm that is now stronger than that of Hurricane Katrina that ravaged the southern US in 2005. People have been urged to run for cover and to shelter inland where possible to avoid storm surges.
But as the hurricane continues to affect the Caribbean, including neighbouring countries such as Cuba, Haiti and the Dominican Republic, videos have begun to circulate showing the impact of the storm. But users have been warned to take some videos with a pinch of salt.
Several videos of destruction caused by the hurricane have been identified as being created using artificial intelligence (AI). According to the BBC, many of these videos are now going viral due to the extreme nature of their content.
In a update posted to their liveblog covering the storm, the news agency said that videos had been uploaded to TikTok that have already garnered millions of views, but are being generated using AI. These could also be old clips from “past storms” that are being uploaded as if they are uploaded in the past few hours.
As an example, one video mentioned showed a shark being added into video captured of a storm surge as a wave pounds onto the shore. The video has already been viewed over half a million times, with a blurred sign at the bottom left that appears to be a watermark to confirm that it was made using AI.
After a swathe of criticism, the original uploader was forced to add a label to the video which confirmed that artificial intelligence had been used to make thee video. Other AI-generated videos of the storm include a video filmed of the eye of the storm from a passenger plane flying by.
In the caption of the video, the uploader penned: “That moment when you realise the swirling clouds below aren’t just clouds… they’re a hurricane.” However, despite racking up some 2.6million views, this is not a real video and was posted by a user renowned for sharing fake clips of natural disasters.
Reports published by the Associated Free Press found that TikTok has already taken down over two dozen different AI-generated videos of the hurricane as it continues to smash into the island nations. However, despite this, a slew of other fake videos continue to make their way onto the platform.
It comes as Jamaica continues to batten down its hatches as Hurricane Melissa makes its way across the island. The Category 5 storm — sometimes dubbed a “super-hurricane” kicked into motion last week as it grew in strength and intensity last week.
Local authorities in Jamaica have urged residents to move inland, despite over half the population living within three miles of the shore. After making landfall on the island, the storm is expected to move northeast and head towards Haiti and Bahamas, brushing the US state of Florida on its way.
For the latest breaking news and stories from across the globe from the Daily Star, sign up for our newsletters.
#Fake #Hurricane #Melissa #videos #including #AIgenerated #sharks #spreading #online
