Progressive Slovakia becomes target of AI misinformation, tops polls

Social media giants Facebook and YouTube have not reacted to two of the far-right Republika’s social media posts in which AI is used to mimic the voice of Progressives leader Michal Šimečka and spread falsehoods, like plans to raise the cost of beer.

In the videos shared on social media, the AI-generated voices of Šimečka and President Zuzana Čaputová, a former PS board member, renounce their progressive values and support Republika, while the text states that any similarities in the voices used are purely coincidental.

But neither Facebook nor YouTube – under new scrutiny by the EU’s Digital Services Act (DSA), which requires them to protect against election manipulation – have responded to reports of the posts, even after 48 hours.

“We’ve seen a lot of bizarreness in this campaign. But the best bits of the anti-campaign our opponents have saved for last,” Šimečka said, pointing to another AI-generated hoax spread on WhatsApp, in which his voice promised to raise beer prices. The leader of progressives added that they have no plans to engage with alcohol pricing.

Attacks are mounting on the Progressive Slovakia party as recent polls show it is gaining ground on the previous frontrunner, Smer, which has campaigned on ending military support for Ukraine, which could influence EU foreign policy. The hoaxes include a false claim that a candidate died from COVID-19 vaccines.

YouTube says it is confident that it is complying with EU policy and that it uses tools to detect AI deep fakes used to break its rules against spreading misinformation. The videos are among the most popular on the far-right party’s channel.

As well as using AI-generated voices of politicians, the videos also attack the LGBTI+ community, which has become a heated election issue. Smer and its potential coalition partner, Republika, spread transphobic hate speech during the progressive campaign on gender self-identification.

(Barbara Zmušková | Euractiv.sk)