2024-02-09T18:52:40+00:00
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/ Microsoft reported that a hacking group supported by the Iranian Revolutionary Guard managed to hack into television broadcasting platforms in the UAE using a fake news broadcast about the Gaza war created by artificial intelligence, according to the Guardian newspaper.
Microsoft added that a hacking group called “Cotton Sandstorm” hacked into TV streaming services in the UAE when an AI news presenter appeared reading a fake news report titled “For Humanity” about the war between Israel and Hamas in Gaza.
The Guardian newspaper said that the fake broadcaster was commenting on unverified images that claimed to show Palestinians injured and killed as a result of Israeli military operations in Gaza.
Microsoft analysts said the hacking group posted videos on Telegram showing it had hacked three online streaming services and disrupted news channels using the fake news anchor.
The UAE-based news service, Khaleej Times, reported that hackers targeted Dubai residents using an HK1RBOXX receiver last December with a message that read: “We have no choice but to hack to get this message to you.”
After the message, the fake broadcaster showed “shocking” footage, in addition to a video showing the number of dead and wounded in Gaza so far.
Microsoft also said there were reports of similar incidents in Canada and the United Kingdom.
Concerns are growing about the ability of deepfake technology to spread misleading news by exploiting artificial intelligence to create false content, aimed at provoking public anger in conjunction with the war between Israel and Hamas in Gaza.
Videos and photos are circulating on social media, with their publishers claiming that they show, for example, scenes of killing and destruction in Gaza, while others claim to the contrary, that the photos of corpses are of actors pretending to die in order to attract sympathy and deepen feelings of hatred.
Images of the war between Israel and Hamas clearly demonstrated the potential of AI as a misleading propaganda tool used to create images that their publishers try to claim are realistic.
Since the war began on October 7, digitally altered images circulating on social media have been used to make false claims about responsibility for victims or to deceive people about atrocities that never happened.