Photo: VCG
China Military Bugle, an official media account affiliated with the Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) News Media Center, on Tuesday disclosed several cases of AI-generated disinformation involving the military. The cases included fabricated military-related stories, vulgar synthetic videos featuring the service members, and content smearing public figures linked to the military. The accounts responsible for spreading the false information have been penalized in accordance with the law.
In the cases involving AI-fabricated false military stories, China Military Bugle exposed two instances where netizens used AI to generate stories such as "Pregnant woman lamenting the death of husband on military duties" to drive traffic and build followings. Another piece exposed case where AI was used to fabricate stories, creating military-related gimmicks to market height‑increasing health supplements for children.
In cases of AI-produced vulgar military videos, one content creator had their account penalized for posting clips featuring people in military uniforms. The offensive footage included scenes where individuals aimed guns at the camera operator and threatened to shoot, as well as service personnel dancing provocatively while holding merit certificates.
Another online account was penalized for using AI to create a video purportedly showing "a Chinese war correspondent reporting from the front line" in order to gain traffic and mislead public perception.
Some other online accounts used AI to vilify public figures associated with the military. For example, they leveraged AI to produce spoof videos of military personnel, including the spokesperson of the Ministry of National Defense and the "most beautiful female pilot," to attract attention. These accounts were penalized for damaging the image of the military and its personnel.
Since the launch of the special campaign to regulate the online ecosystem for military-related content in 2026, relevant military authorities, working alongside the Cyberspace Administration of China (CAC), have rigorously cracked down on the use of AI to produce and disseminate false military‑related information that mislead public perception and undermine the image of the armed forces.
Global Times