Incidents gathered from public reporting around the world. Each one links to the articles it came from. None of it is a finding that anyone broke the law.
Reports people file about their own experience are not shown here and never will be without their agreement. Tell us what happened to you.
44 incidents closest to “Channels Plus” · matched on meaning · public reporting
After 78 Years on Air, This Baltimore TV Station Cut Its Anchors. What Replaced Them Has Critics Worried inc.com
1 source article · read the reporting →
Hackers targeted YouTube content creators with a phishing scam using an AI-generated deepfake of CEO Neal Mohan. The private video falsely announced monetisation policy changes and directed victims to phishing sites or malware. YouTube warned creators that it never contacts users through private videos and advised reporting the messages. Affected users reported malicious executables stealing session cookies and hijacking accounts.
4 source articles · read the reporting →
On 29 January 2024, 9News Melbourne broadcast an altered photo of Victorian MP Georgie Purcell, which made her dress more revealing and enlarged her breasts. The channel said the alteration was caused by automation in Adobe Photoshop during resizing, but Adobe stated any changes would have required human intervention. Purcell reported receiving sexist abuse online as a result and criticised the incident as something that would not happen to a male MP. The channel apologised unreservedly, and Purcell accepted the apology while calling for lessons to be learned.
10 source articles · read the reporting →
Flock cameras continuously capture license plate data and images, tracking vehicles' movements and storing data on residents in Waukesha County.
1 source article · read the reporting →
AI-generated videos and images falsely portrayed Tamil Nadu CM Vijay Thalapathi as offering financial benefits, misleading the public
1 source article · read the reporting →
AI-generated fake videos and images of a political leader were created and circulated online, misleading the public
1 source article · read the reporting →
AI researcher and YouTuber Yannic Kilcher trained a language model, GPT-4chan, on 3.3 million threads from 4chan's /pol/ board. Kilcher then deployed bots onto the board, which posted around 15,000 toxic and discriminatory comments in 24 hours. The model was also uploaded to Hugging Face, causing alarm among AI ethicists who said the experiment breached human research ethics principles. Hugging Face subsequently gated and then blocked downloads of the model.
2 source articles · read the reporting →
YouTube's recommendation algorithm surfaced videos with graphic bestiality thumbnails, some with millions of views. The platform's thumbnail detection AI failed to catch them because they lacked typical pornography characteristics. After BuzzFeed News flagged the content, YouTube removed the videos and terminated the accounts, and stated it was developing better detection tools.
2 source articles · read the reporting →
Threat actors used Gamma, an AI-powered presentation builder, to host a page that redirected recipients to a fake Microsoft SharePoint login portal. Emails sent from compromised legitimate accounts passed authentication checks, while a Cloudflare Turnstile blocked automated security scanners. An adversary-in-the-middle framework validated credentials in real time and captured session cookies, enabling multi-factor authentication bypass on Microsoft accounts. Abnormal reported the campaign on 15 April 2025.
7 source articles · read the reporting →
Journalist Ravish Kumar alerted the public that AI-generated deepfake channels on YouTube are using his voice and likeness to read fake news. He filed a complaint with YouTube and urged viewers not to mistake these channels for his own. The channels remain active as he awaits action from the platform.
1 source article · read the reporting →
YouTube creators are using AI-generated and manipulated media to publish fake news videos about Black celebrities like Sean 'Diddy' Combs and Bishop T.D. Jakes, garnering millions of views. The videos spread false narratives, often tied to real scandals, and appear in search results and recommendations. YouTube has terminated some channels and removed others from its monetization program, but the content continues to proliferate. The incident highlights the challenge of AI-generated misinformation on major platforms.
1 source article · read the reporting →
Avaaz investigation finds YouTube's recommendation algorithm is driving millions of users to climate misinformation videos. 16% of top related videos for 'global warming' contained misinformation, collectively amassing 21.1 million views. Ads from major brands like Samsung and L'Oréal were found on these videos, inadvertently funding the creators. Avaaz calls on YouTube to detox its algorithm and demonetize disinformation.
2 source articles · read the reporting →
Radio Kraków, a state-owned broadcaster in Poland, relaunched its OFF Radio Kraków channel with AI-generated presenters, replacing human external collaborators. Around a dozen staff lost their jobs as a result. The station's manager stated that the decision was based on the channel's low listenership and that no employees were dismissed, only external collaborators. Former staff launched a petition criticizing the move as a dangerous precedent for the media industry.
3 source articles · read the reporting →
A network of five YouTube channels operated by individuals in Nigeria used AI-generated news anchors and synthetic voiceovers to repurpose interviews with Scott Ritter and Douglas Macgregor, spreading pro-Kremlin narratives. The channels amassed over 5.8 million views and exhibited coordinated inauthentic behavior. Researchers identified the operators through publicly listed emails and linked them to freelancing platforms, suggesting possible third-party contracting. The network's content aligns with Russian influence operations, though motivation remains inconclusive.
1 source article · read the reporting →
MBN, a South Korean cable channel, introduced an AI-powered news anchor based on anchor Kim Ju-ha. The AI, named AI Kim, was created through deep learning using 10 hours of video of Kim. It presents news in her voice and manner, intended to allow 24/7 broadcasting.
10 source articles · read the reporting →
Channel 4 is to broadcast a deepfake of the Queen in its alternative Christmas message, created by VFX studio Framestore. The broadcaster said the aim was to warn about fake news, but the BBC's royal correspondent criticised the voice and some viewers called it disrespectful. Ofcom received a small number of complaints but could not consider them because it is a post-transmission regulator.
10 source articles · read the reporting →
The Russian disinformation network 'Matryoshka' has launched a campaign on Bluesky, posting AI-generated videos that impersonate academics to spread anti-Ukraine narratives. The videos use AI to replicate the voices of real professors, making false claims about the war. The campaign was detected by Bellingcat founder Eliot Higgins and the Bot Blocker project. The videos have gained limited traction on Bluesky so far, but researchers warn the platform is more vulnerable to such disinformation.
3 source articles · read the reporting →
Portland Metro, an elected regional government in Oregon, ended its pilot project with movement data company Replica after a disagreement about data sharing. Portland Metro requested raw, disaggregated data, which Replica refused to provide, citing user privacy concerns. The partnership was terminated without payment.
10 source articles · read the reporting →
YouTube terminated the Atajurt Kazakh Human Rights channel on June 15, 2021, citing violations of community guidelines, then reinstated it days later without explanation. Several videos were subsequently locked for alleged support of violent criminal organizations. The channel documents video testimonies from family members of people imprisoned in Xinjiang. YouTube representatives stated the actions were taken under policies against doxing and violent criminal organizations, but the organization and supporters allege coordinated mass reporting campaigns by state-linked actors.
9 source articles · read the reporting →
MTV Lebanon aired a deepfake video on its online platforms showing two victims of the 2020 Beirut port explosion, Ralph Mallahi and Amin Al-Zahed, speaking directly to the camera. The video, aimed at commemorating the victims and demanding justice, was widely condemned on social media as unethical, traumatising, and emotionally manipulative. Some viewers reported the video for causing psychological harm.
10 source articles · read the reporting →
A study by researchers at Simon Fraser University found that Google's autocomplete subtitle algorithm assigned neutral or positive labels to 30 of 37 conspiracy theorists, including Alex Jones as 'American Radio Host' and Gavin McInnes as 'Canadian writer'. The researchers argue this can mislead the public and amplify extremist views because the labels do not reflect publicly known harmful roles. Google says the subtitles are generated automatically and that custom subtitles cannot be accepted. No response to the findings is reported.
10 source articles · read the reporting →
KBS, MBC, and SBS filed a copyright lawsuit against Naver, alleging that Naver used their news articles to train its generative AI platforms HyperCLOVA and HyperCLOVA X without permission. The broadcasters' association had previously sent notices prohibiting such use and requested compensation, but Naver did not respond. Naver has since revised its terms and refrained from using news data without consent.
5 source articles · read the reporting →
Good Daily Inc., run by Matthew Henderson, operates hundreds of AI-generated local newsletters across the U.S. that aggregate and summarize news from local outlets. The newsletters use large language models without disclosing this to subscribers, and feature fabricated testimonials. Some readers reported being signed up without their consent. Local news outlets have criticized the network for not driving meaningful traffic and for undermining trust.
3 source articles · read the reporting →
The Australian Strategic Policy Institute (ASPI) revealed an extensive network of at least 30 YouTube channels, called Operation Shadow Play, that used generative AI to produce and publish pro-China and anti-US content. The network exploited YouTube's algorithmic recommendation system to cross-promote videos, gaining about 730,000 subscribers and 120 million views. The operation is alleged to be a coordinated influence campaign, possibly directed by a Mandarin-speaking controller, though the specific actor is unknown.
4 source articles · read the reporting →
