Full Fact, the UK's independent fact checking charity, has compiled a round-up of recent claims, highlighting AI-generated images from French protests and tracking the Government's triple lock pledge.
AI-Generated French Protest Images Circulate Online
Footage of protests and unrest in France has flooded social media feeds in recent days, but not everything shared is genuine or related to recent events. France experienced major disorder last weekend, with large protests over the cost of living and school conditions alongside scenes of riots and looting, and lots of genuine imagery of different incidents has been circulating online.
One dramatic image showing people throwing fireworks and waving Palestinian flags at the foot of the Eiffel Tower is not real. OpenAI's detector indicated the image contains an invisible SynthID watermark, suggesting it was generated with OpenAI tools. There are visual inconsistencies too, such as several people in the background appearing to blend into each other and into the smoke.
Fake Videos and Images Identified
A viral video appearing to show people hanging large Palestinian and Jordanian flags from the top of the Eiffel Tower is also not real, with no evidence it shows a real event. Meta's AI detector indicated the clip was created using AI, and visual clues include sections of the tower not matching genuine photos and the metal frame appearing to warp when the video pans up.
An image of an elderly couple in their underwear, shared thousands of times with claims they were stripped and robbed during the riots, is also not real. Google's SynthID Detector flagged it as made or edited with AI, and glitches include a masked person with two heads but one body. No official reports confirm such an attack.
A video of police using shields and batons during a protest, captioned as recent student protests, is old and unrelated, having been online since at least March 2023.
Triple Lock Pledge Tracking
Prime Minister Andy Burnham announced plans to change the state pension triple lock mechanism in April 2030, with the Government planning to legislate during this Parliament. Full Fact's Government Tracker is monitoring 95 commitments from Labour's 2024 manifesto or since.
The triple lock, introduced in 2011, increases the state pension each April by the highest of 2.5%, CPI inflation, or average earnings growth. On September 29, Mr Burnham said the Government will adjust the triple lock in April 2030, with a Number 10 press release stating the adjusted lock will see pensions rise by 2.5% or inflation, whichever is higher, and more if needed to maintain value relative to earnings. Pensions minister Torsten Bell said the earnings aspect will be calculated as the amount required to return or maintain the pension's value relative to 2029/30's record high as a share of earnings.
The Conservatives have accused the Government of ditching the triple lock. The tracker currently rates the pledge as wait and see, as legislation has not yet been introduced to Parliament.
