If a photo, video, voice note or written tip may be AI-generated, do not wait for a perfect authenticity verdict before contacting police. Verify the source and context, look for independent confirmation, check whether an image appeared earlier, record the identifying details without altering the original, and report promptly. If the material describes an immediate threat, use your jurisdiction’s emergency channel first.
The five-step verification sequence
- Check the source, context and purpose. Identify who sent or first posted the material, whether the account or organisation is genuine, when it appeared, and what action the message is trying to make you take.
- Corroborate the underlying claim. Check the organisation or person that would know, official announcements, independent credible reporting and reputable fact-checking resources.
- Search for earlier appearances. A reverse image search can reveal an older post, different caption or previous debunking.
- Record useful identifiers. Keep the original URL, sender, username or user ID, platform, time and a factual description of what you received. Do not edit or re-encode an original file.
- Report through the correct local route. Do not delay a report while collecting a complete evidence package. Emergency and non-emergency channels differ by country and, in some cases, by state or territory.
This process establishes what you received, where it came from and whether the claim is supported. It does not turn a visual impression into proof that media is synthetic or authentic.
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What you can—and cannot—establish
AI-generated and AI-modified media can look convincing. The FBI’s public safety guidance says such content is becoming harder to distinguish from authentic material. A face that looks slightly wrong, unnatural audio, odd lighting or a detector result may justify further checking, but none is a reliable final verdict on its own.
| Check | What it can establish | What it cannot establish by itself |
|---|---|---|
| Source and account review | Whether the sender, account or organisation appears genuine, and whether the message is unsolicited or out of character. | That the attached media was created by that account or has not been altered. |
| Official confirmation and independent reporting | Whether people or organisations with direct knowledge support or contradict the underlying claim. | Who created a disputed image, video or voice recording. |
| Reverse image search | Whether a picture appeared earlier, with another caption or in a debunking report. | Whether the picture is AI-generated, or whether the newest claim attached to it is true. |
| Visible or audible artefacts | Reasons to pause and investigate more carefully. | A conclusive authenticity result. |
| Automated detection tools | At most, an additional signal whose method, training data and error rate would need to be understood. | A substitute for human verification or a reason to delay a police report. |
There is no single consumer test or universal legal standard that settles every deepfake question. The FBI has described its own internal practice this way: “We currently verify and validate all SI-generated leads with human experts.” That statement concerns FBI handling of its leads; it is not a method the public can apply to certify a file.
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Step 1: Check the source, context and aim
Singapore Police Force guidance calls its first step “Assess the Message” and directs readers to consider source, context and aim. Those three questions are more dependable than trying to judge pixels or a voice in isolation.
Establish who sent or first posted it
- Write down the sender’s displayed name, username or user ID, platform and profile address.
- Check whether the account is the genuine account of the named person, agency or organisation. Look for a long-standing history and contact details that match the organisation’s known channels, but do not treat a badge, logo or follower count as authentication.
- Ask whether you are looking at the earliest available post or only a repost. A repost can lose the original caption, date or location.
- If the message claims to come from an organisation, reach that organisation through a contact method you already trust rather than replying to an unexpected message or using a link in it.
Reconstruct the context
Note when you received the material and what was happening around it. Does the alleged event fit the stated date, location and people involved? Is an old photograph being presented as a current incident? Does the account normally post on this subject, or is the message unusually out of character? Missing context is not proof of fabrication, but it is a reason to seek confirmation before repeating the claim.
Identify the aim and pressure
Be especially cautious when an unsolicited message urges an unusual or unsafe action. Requests for an urgent money transfer, a click on a suspicious link, disclosure of personal information or immediate forwarding to others increase the need for independent checks. Do not let a demand for speed replace verification. If the message contains a genuine safety risk, you can report the risk while clearly stating what you have and have not confirmed.
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Step 2: Corroborate the underlying claim
Separate the media from the allegation attached to it. Even a genuine photograph can be paired with a false caption; a synthetic clip can be used to describe a real event. Test the claim itself.
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Start with the organisation or person that would know
Look for an announcement, public statement or direct confirmation from the relevant police force, government department, venue, school, company or named individual. Use a known official website or phone number, not contact information supplied only in the suspicious message. If the alleged event is local, a local authority or police account may have the most useful confirmation.
Check independent credible reporting
Compare the claim with reporting from established outlets that identify their sources and dates. Victoria Police specifically recommends official news outlets, press releases and fact-checking resources when assessing suspected deepfakes. Independent reports should agree on basic facts such as time, place and people; a single copied post is not independent corroboration.
Interpret a lack of confirmation correctly
No matching announcement does not prove that an event did not happen. Breaking events, private incidents and events in places with limited reporting may not appear online. If the tip describes a real risk, report it as an unconfirmed tip and explain which checks produced no result. Police can investigate facts that a member of the public cannot verify.
Step 3: Check whether an image appeared earlier
Victoria Police recommends reverse image search for suspected deepfakes. The useful question is not “Did a computer make this?” but “Where and when has this image appeared before, and what did it originally show?”
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- Use a reverse image search service and submit the image, or the clearest available crop.
- Compare the earliest dated results with the version you received. Record the original caption, location, event and account where they are available.
- Check whether the same picture has been cropped, mirrored, overlaid with text or paired with a different claim.
- Save the relevant result address in your notes and describe the relationship rather than declaring a verdict. For example: “The same image appears in a post dated two years earlier about a different event.”
An earlier appearance can reveal reuse or a previous debunking. It does not, by itself, prove that the image is AI-generated, identify its author or establish that either caption is true. Search coverage is incomplete, so a result that finds nothing is not evidence that the image is original. For video or audio, available search methods vary; apply the same caution to any still frame, transcript or excerpt you can independently locate.
Step 4: Record details without changing the original
Police guidance identifies practical details that help investigators locate the material. Keep them while they are readily available, but do not turn yourself into a forensic examiner.
| Detail | What to write down |
|---|---|
| Location of the material | Original URL, message link, platform and any group or channel name. |
| Account information | Sender’s displayed name, username, user ID and profile address, if shown. |
| Timing | When you received it, when it was posted and any date or time claimed in the content. Include your time zone when it could matter. |
| Content | The exact words used, what the image or video appears to show, and any request or threat attached to it. |
| Your checks | Which official pages, organisations, news reports or reverse-search results you checked and what each showed. |
Preserve an original copy when practical
Do not edit, annotate, crop, filter, re-encode or repeatedly forward a file that may be needed as evidence. Keep the message or download in its original state and make separate notes about your observations. If a platform may remove the post, record the link and account details promptly. Do not attempt specialist extraction of metadata or hidden files unless investigators ask you to.
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Do not delay because you lack screenshots
Police.uk’s public guidance states: “You don’t need to gather ‘evidence’ like screenshots, text messages, videos or photos before you report to us.” If you can safely retain them, they may help, but reporting the concern is more important than assembling a perfect file. Tell the officer what is unavailable, deleted or inaccessible.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Step 5: Report promptly through the right local channel
Choose the route based on urgency and jurisdiction. Emergency numbers are not interchangeable between countries.
If there is immediate danger
Use the emergency channel for the place where the danger is occurring. State that the information may be manipulated or unverified, then give the concrete risk, location, people involved and time. Do not wait for a reverse-search result if someone may be in immediate danger.
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|---|---|---|
| United Kingdom | Police.uk says to call 999 where there is immediate danger to life or violence or threats of violence. | Use the relevant Police.uk reporting route or local police guidance. Police.uk says you can report false information without first collecting screenshots or other evidence. |
| Victoria, Australia | Victoria Police says to call Triple Zero (000) for an immediate threat to life or risk of harm. | Contact a local police station or use ReportCyber, following Victoria Police’s current instructions. |
| Singapore | The supplied Singapore Police Force guidance does not establish a universal emergency number for this article. | Use the Singapore Police Force’s current official reporting channel and describe the suspected impersonation or manipulated content. |
| United States | Use the emergency number and law-enforcement agency serving the location of the immediate risk. | Contact the relevant local law-enforcement agency and follow its current instructions for digital material. |
| Other locations | Use the emergency service for the country or territory where the danger is occurring. | Use the local police or officially designated cybercrime reporting route. |
Do not apply the UK’s 999 instruction or Victoria’s 000 instruction outside those jurisdictions. If you are reporting from somewhere not listed, check the current police website or phone directory for the correct route before calling, unless the situation requires an immediate emergency call.
How to describe the tip to police
Give a factual account rather than a confident label. “I received a deepfake” claims more than you may know; “I received a video that may be manipulated and I cannot verify the alleged event” accurately states the position.
A useful report can follow this order:
- What happened: explain how you received the material and what it alleges.
- Where it is: provide the platform, original link, account and group or channel.
- When: give the receipt time, posting time and claimed event time, noting the time zone where relevant.
- Why it concerns you: identify the apparent threat, impersonation, fraud request, unsafe instruction or likely harm.
- What you checked: list official confirmations sought, independent reports found and earlier appearances located.
- What remains uncertain: say whether the source is unverified, the file may be altered, the original is unavailable or the claim has not been corroborated.
For example: “At 14:10 UTC I received a video from the account [account identifier] on [platform]. It claims that [specific event] occurred at [place] on [date]. I found the same frame in an older post about a different event, and I could not find confirmation from [relevant organisation]. I do not know whether the video is AI-generated. The immediate concern is [specific risk].” Keep any fill-in values in your own notes; do not invent details that are not present.
Common mistakes that weaken a report
- Treating an artefact as proof: A distorted hand, lip-sync problem or strange background can be a clue, not a conclusion.
- Relying on a detector score: Automated tools can produce false positives and false negatives; police reporting should not depend on one score.
- Confusing reuse with fabrication: An old genuine image used in a new false post may be misinformation without being AI-generated.
- Waiting for certainty: A credible but unconfirmed danger is still worth reporting. State the uncertainty plainly.
- Altering the file: Editing or re-encoding can remove information investigators may need.
- Using the wrong emergency route: Numbers and online portals are local. Confirm the jurisdiction before giving specific instructions to someone elsewhere.
- Amplifying the material while checking it: Share the minimum necessary with police or the relevant organisation, and avoid spreading an unverified allegation as fact.
A practical decision rule
Report when the potential harm is meaningful, even if authenticity is unresolved. Before reporting, complete whatever checks are safe and quick: identify the source, test the context, seek direct or independent corroboration and search for earlier appearances. Then preserve the identifiers you have and tell police exactly which parts are confirmed, contradicted or unknown. Verification improves the quality of a report; it is not a gate that you must pass before making one.
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