Fake Minns, Altered Images and Psyop Theories: Misinformation about the Bondi attack shows AI’s ability to confuse

AI-enhanced misinformation was difficult to avoid in the hours and days following the Bondi Beach terror attack, with some platforms making dubious claims to users looking for factual information.

The “For You” side of that those behind the attack were IDF soldiers; that the injured were crisis actors; that an innocent person was one of the alleged attackers; and that the Syrian Muslim hero who fought the attackers was a Christian with an English name.

Generative AI only made things worse.

An altered clip of New South Wales Premier Chris Minns with fake audio making false claims about the attackers was shared across multiple accounts.

In another particularly egregious example, an AI-generated image based on an actual photo of the victim was altered to suggest that he was a crisis actor…