#FactCheck:AI-Generated War Video Falsely Linked to Israel-Iran Tensions Goes Viral
Executive Summary
A video is being widely shared on social media linking it to the ongoing tensions between Israel and Iran. The clip shows multiple fighter jets flying across the sky, while massive flames appear to be rising from tall buildings below. The visuals are dramatic and alarming, creating the impression of a large-scale military strike. Users sharing the video claim that after Israel carried out an attack, Iran launched a retaliatory strike on Israel, and that the viral footage captures the aftermath of this counterattack. However, research conducted by the CyberPeace found the claim to be misleading. Our research revealed that the viral video is not authentic but AI-generated.
Claim
On the social media platform Facebook, a user shared the viral video with the caption: “Iran has also carried out a retaliatory attack on Israel.”
(Post link and archive link provided above.)
Factcheck
Upon closely examining the video, we noticed several irregularities in the visuals and motion patterns, which raised suspicion that the footage may have been generated using artificial intelligence. To verify this, we analyzed the video using the AI detection tool developed by Hive Moderation. According to the analysis report, there is a 62 percent likelihood that the viral video is AI-generated.
As part of further verification, we also scanned the video using Sightengine. The results indicated an even stronger probability, suggesting that the video is 99 percent AI-generated.
Conclusion
Our research confirms that the viral video does not depict a real military attack. It is AI-generated content being falsely shared in the context of Israel-Iran tensions.
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Executive Summary:
Internship scams have infiltrated the academic landscape, scamming students of many prestigious colleges. The students often prefer to carry out internships to gain knowledge and work experience. These scams use the name of popular multinational companies to exploit the students. This report studies the various case studies, their modus operandi, impact on the students and preventive strategies. This report emphasises the importance of awareness and proactive measures to protect students from falling victim to such frauds.
1. Introduction
Internships are the opportunity to overcome the gap between the practical knowledge acquired at the university and practical experience, to get practical skills and contacts in the field of activity, as well as improve employment prospects. Instead, because of high paying internships and interesting positions students have become targets of work scams. As we have seen with the advancement in digital technology, scammers take advantage of the disguise of the internet, making very neat, smart, and convincing scams.
Internship scams are very prevalent and they include fake job listings and phishing schemes as well as payment frauds which make students lose lots of money and also emotionally expose them. In this specific case, this paper examines how these scams work, the warning signs, and ways of protecting students from falling victim to them.
2. Detailed Modus Operandi of Internship Scams
Internship scams often employ a variety of tactics to attract and deceive unsuspecting students. Below is a detailed breakdown of the common methods used by scammers:
- Fake Job Listings and Offers:some text
- Scammers post attractive internship offers on popular job portals, social media platforms, and even send personalised messages via LinkedIn. These listings often mimic the branding and style of reputable companies, including well-designed logos, professional email addresses, and official-looking websites.
- Example: A fake internship offer from a reputed software firm circulates on a job portal, with a professional landing page. Students who apply are quickly “hired” without any interviews, and are asked to pay a security deposit to confirm their acceptance.
- Upfront Payment Requests:some text
- Scammers ask for payment such as registration fees, training materials, background checks, or security deposits. These payments comes under non-refundable payment and it act as the primary revenue stream for the fraudsters.
- Example: A group of students receive internship offers requiring a payment of INR 10,000 for "training materials" and "online assessments." After making the payment, the students never hear back from the company, and all attempts to contact them were futile.
- Phishing and Identity Theft:some text
- Beyond financial fraud, some scams aim to steal personal information. Fake internship applications often require detailed personal data, including identity proofs, bank account details. This data will be used as identity theft or sold on the dark web.
- Example: A student applies for an internship that asks for copies of identification documents and bank details. This information sharing led to unauthorised transactions in their bank account.
- Work-from-Home Frauds:some text
- With the rise of remote work, scammers also offer work-from-home internships that require students to purchase software or pay for specialised training. After payment, students are often given irrelevant tasks or no tasks at all, leaving them with no real work experience.
- Example: An internship advertised as a "remote data analysis role" required students to buy a proprietary software licence. After paying, students realised the software was freely available online, and the internship tasks were non-existent.
- Impersonation of Reputed Companies:some text
- Scammers use the name of well-known companies, they modify the email addresses or create fake websites that look original. They use these platforms to send offer letters, making it difficult for students to identify the scam.
- Example: A scammer creates a fake website mirroring a major consulting firm's internship page. The only difference is a minor change in the URL. Dozens of students are duped into paying registration fees.
3. Case Studies of Real-Life Incidents
- Case Study 1: The Certification Course and Internshipsome text
- A group of students received personalised emails from an official domain of a reputed tech industry providing an internship offer. Students were asked to pay Rs 10,000 to undergo a certification course to carry the internship. After paying the amount, the students did not receive any instructions, and the company was found to be nonexistent. The scammer had spoofed the company’s email domain, making it difficult to trace the source.
- Case Study 2: The Social Media Trapsome text
- A student from a university encountered an internship post on Instagram, advertising roles at a popular fashion brand. The application process involved a "screening fee" of INR 5,000. Despite appearing legitimate, the internship was fake, and the brand had no knowledge of the post. The student's personal data was also compromised, leading to unauthorised social media activity.
- Case Study 3: Internship Providing Social Platformssome text
- A popular internship providing platform, faced an incident where a scammer posted fraudulent internship offers under the guise of a major multinational. The scam involved asking students to purchase expensive software to start their work. The platform had to issue warnings and remove the listings after several complaints.
4. The Impact on Students
The consequences of internship scams extend beyond immediate financial loss, affecting students on multiple levels:
- Financial Impact:some text
- Students lose their money, ranging from minor fees to significant payments.
- Emotional and Psychological Distress:some text
- These kinds of scams can lead to anxiety, depression and loss of confidence in availing the opportunities in future.
- Exposure to Further Scams:some text
- Scammers often share details of their victims with other fraudsters, making students susceptible to repeated scams, including phishing attacks, financial frauds, and unsolicited offers.
5. Preventive Measures
- Verification of Internships:some text
- Always verify the authenticity of the internship by researching the company on official platforms such as LinkedIn, the company’s official website, and through trusted contacts or college placement cells.
- Avoid Upfront Payments:some text
- Employers do not ask for money in exchange for job or internship offers. If they demand for any kind of payment, then the employer is not original. Always question the necessity of such payments and consult trusted advisors before proceeding.
- Use Trusted Job Portals:some text
- Apply for internships through recognized platforms like LinkedIn, Internshala, or your college’s placement cell, which have verification processes to filter out fraudulent postings.
- Reporting Scams:some text
- Report suspicious offers to your college authorities, placement cells, and local cybercrime departments. Additionally, use platforms like Internshala’s “Report This Job” feature to flag fraudulent listings.
- Stay Educated and Updated:some text
- It is important to educate students by providing workshops, webinars, and awareness sessions on cybersecurity to stay informed and report about the latest scams.
6. Conclusion
Internship scams are a severe threat to the student society since they manipulate the student’s desire for an internship. The best ways to prevent such cons are by being cautious and receptive to whatever is being offered. Internship seekers, colleges and the placement cells have to work hand in hand to ensure that there is no fear among people seeking internships.
References
- Smith, J. (2024). Internship Scams on the Rise: How to Spot and Avoid Them. Retrieved from example1.com.
- Brown, A. (2023). Student Internship Scams in India: A Growing Concern. Retrieved from example2.com.
- Johnson, L. (2024). How to Protect Yourself from Fake Internship Offers. Retrieved from example3.com.
- Gupta, R. (2024). Social Media and the Rise of Job Scams. Retrieved from example4.com.
Executive Summary
A video of senior Congress leader Shashi Tharoor is widely circulating on social media, allegedly showing him praising Pakistan’s diplomatic stance over the ICC T20 World Cup issue. Many users are sharing the clip believing it to be genuine. However, research by the CyberPeace found the claim to be false. The viral video of Tharoor is a deepfake, and the Congress leader himself has described it as fabricated and fake.
Claim
A Facebook page named “Vok Sports” shared the video on February 11, 2026, claiming that Tharoor praised Pakistan. In the viral clip, he is purportedly heard saying in English that Pakistan’s diplomatic handling of the matter was “brilliant” and that it had outmanoeuvred the Indian cricket board, adding that good diplomacy could make a weak nation appear powerful.
The video was widely shared by social media users as authentic. (Archive links and post details provided.)
Fact Check
To verify the claim, we first scanned Tharoor’s official X (formerly Twitter) handle. We found a post dated February 12 in which he responded to a Pakistani journalist who had shared the video. Tharoor stated that the clip was AI-generated “fake news,” adding that neither the language nor the voice in the video was his.
A reverse image search using Google Lens led the Desk to a video uploaded on February 10, 2026, by India Today on its official YouTube channel. The visuals in this original video exactly matched those seen in the viral clip showing Tharoor speaking to the media. However, upon analysing the original footage, we found that Tharoor was speaking in Hindi about the controversy surrounding the T20 World Cup. He stated that politics should not be mixed with cricket or sports and did not praise Pakistan or the Pakistan Cricket Board at any point. This indicates that the audio in the viral clip had been manipulated and replaced. In the original video, Tharoor said that politicians should conduct politics separately, diplomats should handle diplomacy, and cricket players should focus on the game, expressing hope that cricket would move forward with the match.
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GkA1mLlAT8Q&t=3s
To further verify the authenticity of the video, several AI detection tools were used. Analysis through Aurigin.ai suggested a 78 percent probability that the audio in the viral clip was AI-generated.
Conclusion
The CyberPeace confirmed that the viral video is a deepfake. Tharoor did not praise Pakistan’s diplomatic stance during the T20 World Cup controversy, and the circulating clip has been digitally manipulated.
What are Decentralised Autonomous Organizations (DAOs)?
A Decentralised Autonomous Organisation or a DAO, is a unique take on democracy on the blockchain. It is a set of rules encoded into a self-executing contract (also known as a smart contract) that operates autonomously on a blockchain system. A DAO imitates a traditional company, although, in its more literal sense, it is a contractually created entity. In theory, DAOs have no centralised authority in making decisions for the system; it is a communally run system whereby all decisions (be it for internal governance or for the development of the blockchain system) are voted upon by the community members. DAOs are primarily characterised by a decentralised form of operation, where there is no one entity, group or individual running the system. They are self-sustaining entities, having their own currency, economy and even governance, that do not depend on a group of individuals to operate. Blockchain systems, especially DAOs are characterised by pure autonomy created to evade external coercion or manipulation from sovereign powers. DAOs follow a mutually created, agreed set of rules created by the community, that dictates all actions, activities, and participation in the system’s governance. There may also be provisions that regulate the decision-making power of the community.
Ethereum’s DAO’s White Paper described DAO as “The first implementation of a [DAO Entity] code to automate organisational governance and decision making.” Can be used by individuals working together collaboratively outside of a traditional corporate form. It can also be used by a registered corporate entity to automate formal governance rules contained in corporate bylaws or imposed by law.” The referred white paper proposes an entity that would use smart contracts to solve governance issues inherent in traditional corporations. DAOs attempt to redesign corporate governance with blockchain such that contractual terms are “formalised, automated and enforced using software.”
Cybersecurity threats under DAOs
While DAOs offer increased transparency and efficiency, they are not immune to cybersecurity threats. Cybersecurity risks in DAO, primarily in governance, stem from vulnerabilities in the underlying blockchain technology and the DAO's smart contracts. Smart contract exploits, code vulnerabilities, and weaknesses in the underlying blockchain protocol can be exploited by malicious actors, leading to unauthorised access, fund manipulations, or disruptions in the governance process. Additionally, DAOs may face challenges related to phishing attacks, where individuals are tricked into revealing sensitive information, such as private keys, compromising the integrity of the governance structure. As DAOs continue to evolve, addressing and mitigating cybersecurity threats is crucial to ensuring the trust and reliability of decentralised governance mechanisms.
Centralisation/Concentration of Power
DAOs today actively try to leverage on-chain governance, where any governance votes or transactions are directly taken on the blockchain. But such governance is often plutocratic in nature, where the wealthy hold influences, rather than democracies, since those who possess the requisite number of tokens are only allowed to vote and each token staked implies that many numbers of votes emerge from the same individual. This concentration of power in the hands of “whales” often creates disadvantages for the newer entrants into the system who may have an in-depth background but lack the funds to cast a vote. Voting, presently in the blockchain sphere, lacks the requisite concept of “one man, one vote” which is critical in democratic societies.
Smart contract vulnerabilities and external threats
Smart contracts, self-executing pieces of code on a blockchain, are integral to decentralised applications and platforms. Despite their potential, smart contracts are susceptible to various vulnerabilities such as coding errors, where mistakes in the code can lead to funds being locked or released erroneously. Some of them have been mentioned as follows;
Smart Contracts are most prone to re-entrance attacks whereby an untrusted external code is allowed to be executed in a smart contract. This scenario occurs when a smart contract invokes an external contract, and the external contract subsequently re-invokes the initial contract. This sequence of events can lead to an infinite loop, and a reentrancy attack is a tactic exploiting this vulnerability in a smart contract. It enables an attacker to repeatedly invoke a function within the contract, potentially creating an endless loop and gaining unauthorised access to funds.
Additionally, smart contracts are also prone to oracle problems. Oracles refer to third-party services or mechanisms that provide smart contracts with real-world data. Since smart contracts on blockchain networks operate in a decentralised, isolated environment, they do not have direct access to external information, such as market prices, weather conditions, or sports scores. Oracles bridge this gap by acting as intermediaries, fetching and delivering off-chain data to smart contracts, enabling them to execute based on real-world conditions. The oracle problem within blockchain pertains to the difficulty of securely incorporating external data into smart contracts. The reliability of external data poses a potential vulnerability, as oracles may be manipulated or provide inaccurate information. This challenge jeopardises the credibility of blockchain applications that rely on precise and timely external data.
Sybil Attack: A Sybil attack involves a single node managing multiple active fake identities, known as Sybil identities, concurrently within a peer-to-peer network. The objective of such an attack is to weaken the authority or influence within a trustworthy system by acquiring the majority of control in the network. The fake identities are utilised to establish and exert this influence. A successful Sybil attack allows threat actors to perform unauthorised actions in the system.
Distributed Denial of Service Attacks: A Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attack is a malicious attempt to disrupt the regular functioning of a network, service, or website by overwhelming it with a flood of traffic. In a typical DDoS attack, multiple compromised computers or devices, often part of a botnet (a network of infected machines controlled by a single entity), are used to generate a massive volume of requests or data traffic. The targeted system becomes unable to respond to legitimate user requests due to the excessive traffic, leading to a denial of service.
Conclusion
Decentralised Autonomous Organisations (DAOs) represent a pioneering approach to governance on the blockchain, relying on smart contracts and community-driven decision-making. Despite their potential for increased transparency and efficiency, DAOs are not immune to cybersecurity threats. Vulnerabilities in smart contracts, such as reentrancy attacks and oracle problems, pose significant risks, and the concentration of voting power among wealthy token holders raises concerns about democratic principles. As DAOs continue to evolve, addressing these challenges is essential to ensuring the resilience and trustworthiness of decentralised governance mechanisms. Efforts to enhance security measures, promote inclusivity, and refine governance models will be crucial in establishing DAOs as robust and reliable entities in the broader landscape of blockchain technology.
References:
https://www.imperva.com/learn/application-security/sybil-attack/
https://www.linkedin.com/posts/satish-kulkarni-bb96193_what-are-cybersecurity-risk-to-dao-and-how-activity-7048286955645677568-B3pV/ https://www.geeksforgeeks.org/what-is-ddosdistributed-denial-of-service/ Report of Investigation Pursuant to Section 21 (a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934: The DAO, Securities and Exchange Board, Release No. 81207/ July 25, 2017
https://www.sec.gov/litigation/investreport/34-81207.pdf https://www.legalserviceindia.com/legal/article-10921-blockchain-based-decentralized-autonomous-organizations-daos-.html
