MANILA, Philippines — The findings of experts who found traces of manipulation in the video that tried to make it appear that President Marcos was snorting illegal drugs has vindicated him from those who are trying to slander him, Malacañang said yesterday.
In a statement, Presidential Communications Secretary Cesar Chavez cited a recent report by Vera Files, which had asked artificial intelligence (AI) experts from Deepfakes Analysis Unit (DAU) to assess the so-called polvoron video being peddled by Marcos’ critics.
The DAU is part of the India-based Misinformation Combat Alliance that verifies harmful or misleading audio and video content produced using AI, Vera Files said.
According to the report, results of the analyses on a higher-quality polvoron video “indicated possible tampering with the face of the man in the video.”
Using the deepfake detector SensityAI, the experts “found the video to be suspicious and bearing signs of a type of manipulation called face swap,” Vera Files said.
The DAU also found traces of manipulation in the video after using the AI detector HIVE and political deepfake identifier TrueMedia, the fact-checker revealed.
Chavez said the experts’ analyses vindicated Marcos from “malicious individuals” who have been trying to slander him and cast aspersions on his character.
“Findings from experts on digital media and artificial intelligence (AI) have further debunked the authenticity of a video that circulated last July,” the Presidential Communications Office (PCO) said.
Results from the video spectral analysis, the PCO added, revealed that parts of the ear of the man in the video and those of Marcos were different.
Named after a local pastry made of flour and powdered milk, the so-called polvoron video was released a day before Marcos’ third State of the Nation Address.