SINGAPORE: There have been at least 40 Chinese-language videos that spread on platforms such as Douyin and WeChat since April, with people criticising Singapore, claiming that the city-state is ungrateful toward China and is too aligned with the United States.
A May 12 report in the South China Morning Post, however, says that the videos are likely to be propaganda deepfakes.
The report pointed to how the speakers in the video say almost exactly the same thing even as they appear in different settings, and several have even been flagged on WeChat over suspicions that they were AI-generated.
Nevertheless, some of the content has received more than 1,000 likes each.
But users on the platform have also caught on to the ruse and have shown how the scripts used are similar.
What do the videos say?
The clips show individuals who accuse Singapore of being “disrespectful,” “greedy,” and “ungrateful” toward China, which is the city-state’s top trading partner. They also touch on politics in both superpowers, and claim that among all the countries, Singapore is the “most miserable.”
A person in one video said that Singapore “treats the US as a father figure, but the US sees them as an adopted child.”
Another accused the city-state of “constantly making things difficult” for China.
Others, meanwhile, say that as Hainan develops into a major free-trade hub, Singapore would be displaced.
When SCMP sought an official comment, the Ministry of Digital Development and Information and the Ministry of Home Affairs said in a joint reply that they are aware of the videos, some of which contain false claims about Singapore’s economy and energy reserves.
The ministries noted that while the videos are mainly shared on platforms that are not common to Singaporeans, the authorities are staying vigilant against misinformation and hostile information campaigns targeting Singaporeans.
“We have laws in place to guard against such risks. We complement this with public education to help Singaporeans become more well-informed and discerning consumers of online information.”
Where exactly the videos have come from is yet unknown, but concerns of misinformation being spread remain, especially as repeated exposure can cause people to believe in untruths.
Nevertheless, deepfake videos have already spread in the past in Singapore, with some of them involving such high-profile officials as Prime Minister Lawrence Wong and Senior Minister Lee Hsien Loong. /TISG
Read also: PM Lee warns against deepfake videos of him promoting crypto scams
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