Hundreds of videos on TikTok and elsewhere impersonate experts to sell supplements with unproven effects

TikTok and other social media platforms are hosting AI-generated deepfake videos of doctors whose words have been manipulated to help sell supplements and spread health misinformation.

The factchecking organisation Full Fact has uncovered hundreds of such videos featuring impersonated versions of doctors and influencers directing viewers to Wellness Nest, a US-based supplements firm.

All the deepfakes involve real footage of a health expert taken from the internet. However, the pictures and audio have been reworked so that the speakers are encouraging women going through menopause to buy products such as probiotics and Himalayan shilajit from the company’s website.

The revelations have prompted calls for social media giants to be much more careful about hosting AI-generated content and quicker to remove content that distorts prominent people’s views.