Massive Wave of AI-Driven Disinformation Floods Online Amid Iran-Israel Escalation

AI-generated Disinformation Floods Social Media After Israel-Iran Strikes

Since Israel began strikes on Iran on 13 June, a wave of disinformation has flooded social media. WORLDWIRED Verify found dozens of fake videos and posts, many of which appear to exaggerate Iran’s military response and falsely portray Israeli losses.

The most popular fake videos—created with generative AI—have been viewed over 100 million times across platforms. These include manipulated clips of missile strikes, artificial night raids, and fabricated footage showing devastation in Israeli cities.

Pro-Israeli Accounts Recirculate Misleading Iranian Protest Footage

While pro–Iranian accounts shared exaggerated attack videos, pro-Israeli users circulated old clips of protests in Iran. These were falsely presented as evidence of growing support among Iranians for Israel’s military campaign.

Some clips date back to 2022 or earlier but were re-posted with misleading captions. The aim appears to be influencing public perception by suggesting widespread unrest in Iran.

Even AI Chatbots Spread Misinformation

Some users turned to Grok, X’s AI chatbot, to verify suspicious videos. In multiple instances, Grok incorrectly affirmed the authenticity of fake videos, including one showing an endless stream of missile trucks emerging from a mountainside bunker — despite glaring signs of AI manipulation like animated rocks.

First Large-Scale Use of Generative AI in War

such scale during an international military conflict. One viral AI video, viewed over 27 million times, showed an unrealistic barrage of missiles hitting Tel Aviv. Another showed a fake night-time missile strike — scenes that are particularly difficult to verify due to poor lighting.

🇷🇺 Russian Influence Networks Involved?

Lisa Kaplan, CEO of Alethea, a threat analysis group, told Worldwired.online that some accounts pushing F-35 disinfo appear to be linked to Russian influence networks, which have shifted from undermining support for Ukraine to casting doubt on Western and American-

made military technology.

“Russia can’t match the F-35 technologically, so it aims to damage its image through online campaigns,” Kaplan said.

Even Official Sources Mislead

Fake content hasn’t been limited to fringe accounts. State media in Tehran has shared AI-generated videos of Israeli jets being shot down. Meanwhile, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) shared old footage from 2024, which was flagged by community notes on X.

As tensions continue and speculation grows over U.S. involvement or potential strikes on Iran’s nuclear facilities, AI-generated images of B-2 bombers over Tehran are also surfacing — adding to the mix of war-related fiction masquerading as fact.

Misleading Content Goes Viral: Old Footage and AI Clips Spark Online Confusion

An online verification group, Geoconfirmed, has raised alarms over the growing flood of disinformation on social media. The organization called the scale of misleading content “astonishing” and blamed so-called “engagement farmers” for profiting from chaos. According to their findings, outdated videos from past events—such as the October 2024 strikes—and unrelated clips from countries like Pakistan are being reshared as if they’re recent. Some of these posts have gone viral, gathering over 20 million views. Even video game footage and AI-generated scenes are being passed off as real, adding to the confusion and making fact-checking more difficult for everyday users.