Sources you can open
Follow the original records and supporting material. Tool outputs are identified as signals, not proof.
The investigations desk
A verdict you can trace
back to the evidence.
What is the claim? Where did it come from? What can we establish? Every published investigation connects its conclusion to the evidence and makes the limits clear.
18 of 18 published investigations
What do the verdicts mean?
REAL: Evidence supports the specific authenticity claim. AI GENERATED: Evidence supports generative-AI involvement. FAKE: The represented claim or event is fabricated. MISLEADING: Context changes what the material means. INCONCLUSIVE: Evidence does not support a firmer finding.
Altered describes an editing process, not necessarily deception. The existing Giants investigation remains classified FAKE for its false discovery claim; its method is digital compositing.
Another AI Lie editorial illustrationFAKEIs that celebrity investment video advert real? The documented scam pattern
No. On 7 September 2026 police in Northern Ireland said a victim lost £250,000 after seeing what appeared to be an AI-generated video of a well-known financial personality promoting an investment. Police say an advert or apparent celebrity endorsement should never be treated as proof that an investment is genuine. This reviews a documented pattern, not a particular advert.
Updated 23 September 2026 · Read the evidence ↗
NASA Earth Observatory/Michala GarrisonFAKEDoes this video show Anak Krakatau’s September 2026 eruption?
No. The eruption was real, but this footage does not show it. The clip shows lava pouring from a volcano behind a residential street with houses, power lines and cars. Anak Krakatau is a small, uninhabited island in a nature reserve, and everyone was told to stay 3 km away during the eruption. Other fact-checkers report signs of AI generation; we did not run those tests ourselves.
Updated 23 September 2026 · Read the evidence ↗
Prime Minister’s Office, Government of India (GODL-India)FAKEIs the viral BRICS summit ‘selfie’ of world leaders real?
No. The image includes Iran’s former president Ebrahim Raisi, who died in May 2024, and two presidents who did not attend: Brazil’s Lula and the UAE’s Mohammed bin Zayed. It cannot be a photograph from the 12–13 September 2026 summit. Fact-checkers report that detection and provenance tools point to AI generation; we did not run those tools ourselves.
Updated 23 September 2026 · Read the evidence ↗AI GENERATEDDid Nixon record the speech in MIT's Moon Disaster film?
No. MIT discloses that In Event of Moon Disaster uses manipulated video and synthetic speech. The historical contingency text and the apparent recorded performance are different things.
Updated 22 September 2026 · Read the evidence ↗
EHT CollaborationREALIs the first M87 black-hole image real?
Yes, as an image reconstructed from observations. ESO identifies release eso1907a as the Event Horizon Telescope's view of M87 and its shadow, produced computationally from radio measurements.
Updated 22 September 2026 · Read the evidence ↗
NASA / Bill AndersREALIs Apollo 8's Earthrise a real photograph?
Yes. NASA identifies its Earthrise image as a photograph taken by Bill Anders aboard Apollo 8 on 24 December 1968. This finding concerns the linked archive image.
Updated 22 September 2026 · Read the evidence ↗
NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI; J. DePasquale, A. Koekemoer, A. Pagan (STScI).REALAre Webb’s Pillars of Creation real? What the colours mean
Yes—this is a processed scientific image of an observed subject. Its visible colours represent infrared measurements; “real” does not mean it is an unprocessed photograph of what human eyes would see.
Updated 22 September 2026 · Read the evidence ↗
US Postal Inspection Service, via USPS Employee NewsFAKEIs that USPS delivery text genuine? The documented scam pattern
No. The Postal Inspection Service identifies this pattern as impersonation. This is a review of its documented warning, not an assessment of a particular reader’s message or every parcel notification.
Updated 22 September 2026 · Read the evidence ↗
Pablo Xavier, using Midjourney; source reproduction via BuzzFeed News.AI GENERATEDWas the Pope’s white puffer jacket photo AI-generated?
Yes. In a published creator interview, Pablo Xavier described making the image with Midjourney. The finding concerns the identified viral image, not every photograph of Pope Francis wearing white.
Updated 22 September 2026 · Read the evidence ↗
Image maker unidentified; source reproduction via ABC News.FAKEWas the May 2023 Pentagon explosion image real?
No. Contemporary reporting records denials from the Pentagon and Arlington’s fire department. The event claim was false; the evidence reviewed here does not establish exactly how the image was made.
Updated 22 September 2026 · Read the evidence ↗
Metaphysic / DeepTomCruise, via ForbesAI GENERATEDIs that Tom Cruise with Paris Hilton? The DeepTomCruise videos explained
No. The project’s creators describe a collaboration involving performer Miles Fisher and AI artist Chris Ume. The Cruise likeness is a deepfake; the classification does not mean every part of the filmed scene was generated.
Updated 22 September 2026 · Read the evidence ↗
Federal Communications Commission, FCC 24-104AI GENERATEDWas the New Hampshire Biden robocall an AI voice?
Yes. The FCC’s published record identifies the Biden-like voice as an AI-generated imitation. This check concerns that historical robocall, not a new recording or current election instructions.
Updated 22 September 2026 · Read the evidence ↗
NASA Johnson Space Center / Apollo 17 crew.REALIs Apollo 17’s Blue Marble a real photograph?
Yes. NASA’s catalogue identifies this specific Blue Marble image as an Apollo 17 photograph from 7 December 1972. The finding concerns that archived frame, not every Earth image carrying the same nickname.
Updated 22 September 2026 · Read the evidence ↗
Jason M. Allen, using Midjourney and editing tools; web rendition via Wikimedia Commons.AI GENERATEDWas Théâtre D’opéra Spatial made with AI?
Yes. The published creation record describes Midjourney generation followed by human editing in Photoshop and AI-assisted upscaling. This is a finding about how the image was made, not a judgement of its artistic value.
Updated 22 September 2026 · Read the evidence ↗
IronKite; source reproduction published by National Geographic.FAKEIs the giant skeleton photo real? The Giants hoax explained
No. The specific image known as Giants is a digital composite. National Geographic reported its maker’s account; a museum record documents the real mastodon excavation used as the setting.
Updated 22 September 2026 · Read the evidence ↗
The Electrician — © Boris EldagsenAI GENERATEDThe Electrician: an AI artwork that won a photography category
The artist describes an AI production process, his gallery identifies the work as synthetic, and Sony's announcement records the category win.
Updated 22 September 2026 · Read the evidence ↗
Flamingone — © Miles AstrayREALFlamingone: the real photograph entered in an AI competition
The photographer's account and reporting on the competition support a photographic origin. The unusual pose and the category label are not evidence of AI generation.
Updated 22 September 2026 · Read the evidence ↗
Arma 3 — © Bohemia InteractiveMISLEADINGThe game footage presented as live coverage of the Ukraine war
AFP traced the footage to Arma 3 videos and obtained confirmation from the creator and developer. The proposed verdict concerns the false war caption attached to game footage.
Updated 22 September 2026 · Read the evidence ↗Uncertainty you can see
Missing evidence stays visible. An inconclusive finding is an option when no firmer conclusion is supported.
Changes you can follow
Material updates include a public explanation and a record of the previous verdict.