News Release

Findings of experts on ‘polvoron’ video further vindicate PBBM — Chavez



Findings from experts on digital media and artificial intelligence (AI) have further debunked the authenticity of a video that circulated last July, showing a man purportedly “sniffing” illegal drugs.

AI experts from the Deepfakes Analysis Unit (DAU), which is part of the India-based Misinformation Combat Alliance, examined the video, which widely trended when it was released a day before President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. delivered his third State of the Nation Address, and found potential AI tampering of the video.

The results by DAU were reported by Vera Files, an independent and award-winning non-profit media organization and one of the country’s leading fact-checkers.

Presidential Communications (PCO) Acting Secretary Cesar Chavez said that the findings vindicated President Marcos from malicious individuals that have been trying to slander the President and cast aspersions on his character.

In a report by Vera Files Fact Check, published last September 16 and written by writers Celine Isabelle Samson and Bryan Daniele Manalang, Vera Files said that it sent copies of the video to the India-based advocate against misinformation.

It added that the DAU found traces of digital manipulation on what has become known as the “polvoron video.”

Using a tool called SensityAI, the DAU found the “polvoron video” to be suspicious and showed signs of a manipulation called “face swap,” the report said.

Using another tool called HIVE, which detects AI-generated text, image, video and audio, the DAU’s interpretation of results indicated that “traces of manipulation can be found at multiple points of the video’s run-time,” the report added.

Last July 23, the Philippine National Police (PNP) and the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) both debunked the authenticity of the video. Both authorities said that the facial images of the man in the video did not dovetail or match with the President’s facial features.

Results from their video spectral analysis revealed that the tragal notch and the antitragus (parts of the ear) of the man in the video and those of the President were different.

Secretary Chavez warned the public to be wary of malicious videos and social media posts being circulated by malicious individuals. “In today’s world of trolls, bots, and deepfake manipulation, it has become easy to throw mud at others,” he explained.
However, Chavez said that the government will remain vigilant against fake news. The administration has also called on law enforcement agencies to ramp up their drive against misinformation and harmful digital and online posts.

Editor’s Note: Vera Files wrote to PCO last 26 September 2024, to clarify some quotes from their article which we quoted. We have revised this article to reflect their concerns.

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