Yvonne Chaka Chaka Falls Victim to Fake AI Video Making Health Allegations: “It’s Truly Scary”

• An AI video of South African singer and songwriter Yvonne Chaka Chaka made the rounds on the internet
• The fake clip spoke about Yvonne's health and alleged that she followed a doctor's advice to eliminate her disease
• Yvonne swiftly took to her verified social media accounts to warn fans and followers that it was not her in the video

Not even the legends are safe! Award-winning singer-songwriter Yvonne Chaka Chaka fell victim to an artificial intelligence video of herself that made allegations about her health. This prompted the Let Me Be Free singer to warn fans to ignore the misleading clip.

Yvonne took to her social media platforms after seeing the fake video, which was posted on 15 July by the Facebook account Health Track. The clip claimed that the humanitarian had beaten hypertension without the use of medication.

The deepfake Yvonne said in the video:

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"Every day I was slowly dying, masking symptoms but not eliminating the cause. False hope strained my last strength, and the disease was relentlessly advancing. Then, I decided to take the final step: I tried Dr Mercy Mwangangi's (Kenyan medical professional) method."

The video also included a deepfake of Dr Mercy Mwangangi talking about hypertension.

The real Yvonne went to her Instagram account on 27 July, stating to the public:

"This is not me, and I have never endorsed anything like this or by these people. Please do yourselves a favour and never engage or buy these products. These people are very dishonest, and it’s truly scary."

Last year, South Africans agreed that artificial intelligence was getting scary when a young man shared a clip of himself virtually hugging his deceased father.

What is a deepfake?

Massachusetts Institute of Technology's (MIT) Sloan School of Management explains that deepfakes are synthetic media where an individual in a photo or clip is swapped for another person's likeness.

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Below are things to look out for to spot a deepfake:

• Face: Do the facial features look too good to be true?
• Audio: Does the person's voice not match their appearance?
• Lighting: If applicable, what kind of reflection does a person's glasses give off under a light?

SA responds to AI video of Yvonne Chaka Chaka

Many local internet users shared their gratitude after Yvonne explained that it was not her speaking in the video. Some were also shocked at the lengths people would go to spread a false narrative.

@nxumalo_connie wrote in the comment section:

"Thank you for warning us, our Princess. Knowledge is power."

@itspearlnogi assured the celebrated singer:

"We wouldn’t believe it anyway, Aunty Vonnie."

@drpashy said to the public:

"The devil is trying harder and harder. I’m glad you saw it and warned people before those products harm them."

@its_theetso_3 shared with the online community:

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"This AI thing is honestly getting out of hand, especially for elderly people who tend to believe remedies and 'medical advice' from the internet, which is putting them at a high risk!"

@drshamilaramjawan remarked to social media users:

"Crazy people out there."

@busfra added in the comments:

"Thank you for speaking up in the face of too many doctored, AI-enhanced videos. Deepfakes are making people stop taking their medications. Please follow it up with a video convincing people it’s not you. It’s more believable."

Take a look at the AI video in the Facebook post below:

Siya Kolisi AI video promotes scam

In a related article, Briefly News reported that Springbok captain Siya Kolisi also fell victim to an AI video of himself when Nigerian scammers deepfaked his image to promote a fake investment.

The clip proved to be visually convincing However, features of a Nigerian accent that exposed the fraud left South Africans in stitches. Scammers also posed as actress Connie Ferguson in an attempt to trick her supporters about an investment 'opportunity.'

Source: Briefly News