According to The Guardian, TikTok and other social media platforms are hosting AI-generated deepfake videos of doctors. The fake videos manipulate real footage to sell supplements and spread health misinformation. Factchecking organization Full Fact uncovered hundreds of such videos directing viewers to Wellness Nest, a US-based supplements firm.
Real Doctors Featured in Fake Videos
All the deepfakes use real footage of health experts taken from the internet. The pictures and audio have been reworked so speakers encourage women going through menopause to buy products such as probiotics and Himalayan shilajit. Prof David Taylor-Robinson from Liverpool University discovered TikTok was hosting 14 doctored videos of him in August. The cloned version recommended products with unproven benefits.
Taylor-Robinson is a specialist in children’s health. But in one video, the fake version discussed an alleged menopause side-effect called thermometer leg. The deepfake doctor recommended that women visit Wellness Nest and buy a natural probiotic. Female colleagues often report deeper sleep and fewer hot flushes within weeks, the fake Taylor-Robinson claimed.
Videos Took Weeks to Remove
Taylor-Robinson only learned about the misuse when a colleague alerted him. It was really confusing to begin with, he said. TikTok took down the videos six weeks after he complained. Initially, they said some videos violated their guidelines but some were fine. That was absurd, he noted.
Industry-Wide Problem Requires Action
Full Fact also found similar deepfakes on X, Facebook and YouTube. The videos were all linked to Wellness Nest or a connected British outlet called Wellness Nest UK. It has posted apparent deepfakes of high-profile doctors such as Prof Tim Spector and the late Dr Michael Mosley. Duncan Selbie, the former chief executive of Public Health England, was also falsely shown talking about menopause.
Leo Benedictus, the factchecker who led the investigation, called it a sinister and worrying new tactic. The creators of deepfake health videos use AI so someone well-respected appears to be endorsing supplements to treat a range of ailments. Wellness Nest told Full Fact that deepfake videos were 100% unaffiliated with its business. The firm said it cannot control or monitor affiliates around the world.
Helen Morgan, the Liberal Democrat health spokesperson, said AI is being used to prey on innocent people. Where someone seeks health advice from an AI bot, they should be referred to NHS support. A TikTok spokesperson said the platform removed content for breaking rules against harmful misinformation and impersonation.
