A few months ago, I wrote another blog post asking ‘Is it Real?’, but this time, I have a similar, yet different question ‘Is it Fake?’
Over the course of the last week as my island home, Jamaica, was hit with one of the most powerful hurricanes to ever hit the Atlantic Basin, there was another frustration that was added to the mix.
There was mass devastation in some places, and, there were pictures and videos showing what had taken place. But, something else emerged too, very quickly. Fake videos of people being transported on car hoods, and airport ceiling falling in. Multiple fake websites quickly created to accept real donations.
In the midst of an already sad period, people were creating pictures and videos to perpetuate what did not happen. Or, knowing that people would be moved to generosity, created websites to steal from those who were well meaning.
I found myself beyond frustrated as I saw others reposting this fake information. The sad thing is, with the emergence of AI that can easily create videos using people’s likeness, we are going to have to become even more discerning. Instead of quickly sharing a video that looks real, we will have to pause for a moment and look for any tell tale signs. One video is watermarked with the name of the AI company. I know it won’t always be this easy.
This morning, as I knew what today’s topic would be, I opened my email and found an email confirming the subject ‘Workers Fake Receipts with AI’.
This topic reminds me of a verse in the Bible: Matthew 24:24 which states ‘For false messiahs and false prophets will appear and perform great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect.
Friends, as you are looking around seeing some of these signs, would you pause for a moment, and consider whether what you are seeing is fake or real? If there is a hint of ‘this doesn’t seem real’ would you be mindful before hitting the share button?
There are lots of people who are hurting because of real events, we don’t need to add to it, by sharing fake pictures or videos.
Dear Heavenly Father, this season will call for a new level of discernment. There are tools that can easily create whatever our minds can imagine, would you allow us to pause and seek you for wisdom as to whether something is real or not? Would you put a nudge in our spirit, even when we see something that appears real in front of our eyes, but, it is not authentic?