What was claimed
Two images shared on social media show anti-migrant protestors in Portsmouth.
Our verdict
These images are fake. Hundreds of protestors did gather in Portsmouth on 6 September, but these particular images were generated using AI.
Fake images of Portsmouth small boats protest circulate online
Two images which have been shared on social media alongside posts about a recent protest in Portsmouth are fake.
Hundreds of protestors are reported to have blocked roads after around 140 migrants were brought ashore to a ferry port in Eastney on Sunday, 6 September.
The migrants are reported to have attempted to cross the English Channel in a single small boat launched from the Normandy coast in France—much further west than where small boat crossings typically take place. After arriving in the UK, they were transported by coach from Portsmouth to Kent, where small boat arrivals are processed.
Genuine images and footage of the protests have been published by the media. But we’ve seen at least two posts sharing images that are AI-generated.
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One of the images shows a crowd of people, some of whom are carrying flags, surrounded by police officers. Another shows masked men dressed in all black in the water on a beach, with one of the men carrying a large flag that reads “PATRIOTIC PLATFORM Portsmouth: Day 2 - WE’LL DO WHAT THEY WON’T”.
Both images contain a SynthID—an invisible watermark that indicates they were created or edited using AI tools. And there are also a number of inconsistencies in the images that suggest they are fake.
In the first image, the faces of some of the people in the crowd appear blurred. And in the background the base of the Spinnaker Tower—a Portsmouth landmark—is painted blue, when in reality it is currently painted entirely white.
In the second image, a sign displayed on the beach features text that is gibberish, which is often a clue that an image is AI-generated, and the faces of some people shown in a dinghy are blurred.
In addition, neither image appears to match the location where the recent protests took place.
While a few commenting on the images appear to have realised they are AI, many others seem to have taken the posts at face value. Before sharing content like this, it’s important to consider whether it comes from a trustworthy source. Our misinformation toolkit contains tips on how to do this, as does our guide to spotting AI fakes.