WHAT WAS CLAIMED
A New Zealand news Facebook page is publishing images and footage of breaking events.
OUR VERDICT
False.The visuals are AI-generated.
AAP FACTCHECK - Another Facebook page claiming to be a legitimate New Zealand news outlet is pushing out a flood of misleading AI-generated images and videos.
The 'NZ Daily Hub' page is the latest in a series of pages claiming to cover "latest news, breaking news, trends, sports, lifestyles, and events", when it really just pairs original reporting published by credible news outlets with misleading, error-laden visuals generated using artificial intelligence (AI).
AAP FactCheck contacted NZ Daily Hub with a series of questions, but did not receive a response by the time of publication.
One of its posts about Northland flooding features a crude AI-generated image of debris merging into homes that bears little resemblance to genuine footage of the disaster zone, and the garbled text 'Witeppsead Damage.'
A Google Image search reveals that the image and many others published by the page are embedded with SynthID watermarks, indicating they were created using Google's AI image generators.
Another post about a drunk-driving case near Nelson on the South Island includes an image of a flipped car that contains a Google AI watermark.
The caption is based on a New Zealand Herald article that did not contain such photos.
A purported image of a fatal pedestrian accident in Northland shows street lights and signs that do not match Google Street View images of the scene published by 1 News and a Serious Crash Unit van that does not resemble that unit's vehicles seen in an NZ Police video (timestamp 16 seconds).
A post about a car fire on State Highway 1 in Auckland features an image showing a coastal skyline that is inconsistent with the central city location reported by RNZ, and the vehicle does not match the red hatchback seen in authentic photos.
An AI-generated image posted of a flooded community hall in Oakura, on the North Island's west coast, differs significantly from the building visible in photos shared on Facebook by Whangarei Deputy Mayor Scott McKenzie and published by RNZ.
Multiple users have also noted the hall does not resemble the actual building in Oakura, with one asking, "Do you really think the locals don't know what the hall looks like?"
A posted image purporting to show the All Blacks celebrating a rugby union win over South Africa at Eden Park is obviously AI-generated.
Several players' faces have been duplicated, the text on their jerseys is illegible and the name of the team's sponsor, Altrad, is also missing.
The goalposts also appear to be in a corner rather than the centre of the field, and the roof appears to cover the entire corner when Eden Park's awning doesn't do so in real life.
A post about a Black Caps cricket match at Hagley Oval in Christchurch features an unbelievable image of a three-armed bowler wearing a cap, which is not typical in the sport.
There is also gibberish text on the stadium's stands, which bear no resemblance to those at Hagley Oval on Google Maps.
The page has also published several misleading AI videos.
One clip appearing to show rescue attempts at Mount Maunganui after a landslide killed six people in January does not match the actual scene, with NZ police also wearing incorrect uniforms and garbled text appearing.
Police also maintained a strict cordon at the scene, RNZ reported, with the media prevented from approaching, so such a video being filmed is highly unlikely.
Another video shows a muddy disaster scene that bears little resemblance to Mount Maunganui and includes the caption "Tauranga Landslaides: Search Continues".
One video shows a large landslip in a densely populated area with houses nearby, which the caption claims is Helena Bay Hill in Oakura; however, the actual slip at that location was much smaller and occurred in bush country, RNZ reported.
A video supposedly showing emergency crews arriving at a fatal car accident near Whakatane is also fake.
The page has published several almost incomprehensible AI videos, including a purported news report captioned, "Court Orders urtadie sactin, Merfgrders Secure Mental Health Facility".
In the clip, a reporter is seen standing in front of NZ flags that feature only two white stars.
Andrew Lensen, a senior lecturer in AI and program director at Victoria University of Wellington, previously told AAP FactCheck that the aim of these pages was to maximise engagement.
Using AI images could be a form of "rage-bait", he said, intending to drive engagement by sharing clearly fake images.
Using synthetic images may allow such pages to avoid the potential copyright risks of republishing authentic photos from legitimate news outlets, Dr Lensen said.
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