AI-generated deepfake videos of Bulgarian celebrities were used in sponsored Facebook ads to fraudulently promote joint pain products, with the fake content created by manipulating real TV footage and adding synthetic audio.
Starting in April 2024, anonymous Facebook pages sponsored AI-generated advertisements for joint pain products featuring manipulated videos of famous Bulgarian personalities. The deepfake videos used real television footage of celebrities like actor Kamen Donev, but replaced the original audio with AI-generated speech that mimicked their voices to promote joint pain remedies. The ads directed users to fake news articles that imitated legitimate Bulgarian media outlet 'Fakti.bg' but were actually sales platforms for products not available in pharmacies. Factcheck.bg verified that the videos were deepfakes, noting mismatched lip movements, incorrect gender endings in speech, and wrong intonation. Audio analysis using ElevenLabs authenticity tools confirmed 98% probability that the audio was AI-generated. The fraudulent campaign targeted multiple Bulgarian celebrities including actors Mikhail Bilalov and Hristo Shopov, TV host Neli Hadjiyska, investigative journalist Hristo Grozev, and director Magardich Halvadzhiyan. All videos followed the same pattern of directing users to fabricated articles promoting joint pain creams available only through contact forms.
Domain classification, causal taxonomy, severity scores, and national security assessments were LLM-classified and may contain errors.
Using AI systems to gain a personal advantage over others such as through cheating, fraud, scams, blackmail or targeted manipulation of beliefs or behavior. Examples include AI-facilitated plagiarism for research or education, impersonating a trusted or fake individual for illegitimate financial benefit, or creating humiliating or sexual imagery.
Human
Due to a decision or action made by humans
Intentional
Due to an expected outcome from pursuing a goal
Post-deployment
Occurring after the AI model has been trained and deployed
