President Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah has condemned the growing scourge of cybercriminals who use artificial intelligence (AI) to defraud Namibians.
She is the latest and most prominent high-profile figure to be mimicked in in cyber-crime scam.
A fake AI-generated video is circulating on social media platforms, falsely portraying her as promoting a supposed investment scheme called "Namibia Money AI."
The presidency cautioned: "We wish to make it clear that this video is fraudulent and has been artificially generated using AI technology (deepfake) to imitate the President's image and voice.”
Nandi-Ndaitwah's administration informed the public that the president had no relation to the alleged fraud, and the statements made in the video, promising substantial compensation, were completely untrue.
"The Presidency strongly condemns this malicious use of digital technology to deceive citizens, exploit the President’s image, and mislead the public for financial gain."
The Presidency warned such actions were not only unethical but also criminal under Namibian laws.
"We urge members of the public to refrain from sharing or engaging with this fake content and to report it to social media platforms and the relevant authorities."
Such criminal tactics have recently become commonplace.
In September, an AI-generated video went viral showing prime minister Elijah Ngurare, deputy prime minister Natangue Ithete, and minister of information and communication technology Emma Theofelus promoting a bogus investment program.
In view of the prevalence of such crimes, the government has initiated the ongoing Ethical Use of Social Media campaign.
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