An AI-generated deepfake video impersonating Tamil Nadu Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay and falsely offering financial assistance to the public has triggered a scam alert in the state.
The video carries Hindi audio and falsely offers financial assistance, directing people to contact a WhatsApp number for help.
The police said the deepfake video uses AI to make it appear as though Chief Minister Vijay is speaking to the public. The police said the video was created and circulated with an "intention to cheat the innocent people."
Following the detection of the video during cyber patrolling, the Tamil Nadu Crime Branch-CID registered a case through its Cyber Crime Cell and launched an investigation into those behind its circulation.
The Cyber Crime team of the CB-CID detected the video during regular cyber patrolling. A special report was submitted on September 1, following which a case was registered at the Cyber Crime Cell, CB-CID, on the same day.
Investigators have approached Meta seeking information relating to the fake Facebook ID used to circulate the video, as well as relevant logs. A request has also been initiated to take down the fake video from the platform.
Preliminary investigation has revealed that this is not an isolated case. Several similar AI-generated deepfake videos portraying Chief Minister Vijay as offering financial assistance are being circulated across Facebook and other social media platforms.
The police have also found that many of these videos were shared through "purportedly Pakistan based Facebook IDs." However, the investigation is continuing to identify the perpetrators and establish the network involved in circulating the content.
The police said efforts are also under way to ensure that the false content is removed from social media platforms at the earliest.
Issuing a warning to the public, the Tamil Nadu Police said people should not respond to phone numbers or join WhatsApp groups circulated through such videos.
The police stressed that "these videos are not genuine" and are "deep fake videos fabricated by the scammers to cheat the people."
The public has been urged to remain alert and not respond to such content. The police have also appealed to people to educate their family members and others about this kind of online scam.
