#FactCheck - Debunking the AI-Generated Image of an Alleged Israeli Army Dog Attack

Executive Summary:

A viral video of the Argentina football team dancing in the dressing room to a Bhojpuri song is being circulated in social media. After analyzing the originality, CyberPeace Research Team discovered that this video was altered and the music was edited. The original footage was posted by former Argentine footballer Sergio Leonel Aguero in his official Instagram page on 19th December 2022. Lionel Messi and his teammates were shown celebrating their win at the 2022 FIFA World Cup. Contrary to viral video, the song in this real-life video is not from Bhojpuri language. The viral video is cropped from a part of Aguero’s upload and the audio of the clip has been changed to incorporate the Bhojpuri song. Therefore, it is concluded that the Argentinian team dancing to Bhojpuri song is misleading.

‍

Claims:

A video of the Argentina football team dancing to a Bhojpuri song after victory.

‍

Fact Check:

On receiving these posts, we split the video into frames, performed the reverse image search on one of these frames and found a video uploaded to the SKY SPORTS website on 19 December 2022.

‍

We found that this is the same clip as in the viral video but the celebration differs. Upon further analysis, We also found a live video uploaded by Argentinian footballer Sergio Leonel Aguero on his Instagram account on 19th December 2022. The viral video was a clip from his live video and the song or music that’s playing is not a Bhojpuri song. 

‍

Thus this proves that the news that circulates in the social media in regards to the viral video of Argentina football team dancing Bhojpuri is false and misleading. People should always ensure to check its authenticity before sharing.

Conclusion:

In conclusion, the video that appears to show Argentina’s football team dancing to a Bhojpuri song is fake. It is a manipulated version of an original clip celebrating their 2022 FIFA World Cup victory, with the song altered to include a Bhojpuri song. This confirms that the claim circulating on social media is false and misleading.

• Claim: A viral video of the Argentina football team dancing to a Bhojpuri song after victory.
• Claimed on: Instagram, YouTube
• Fact Check: Fake & Misleading

‍

‍

About Customs Scam:

The Customs Scam is a type of fraud where the scammers pretend to be from the renowned courier office company (DTDC, etc.), or customs department or other government entities. They try to deceive the targets to transfer the money to resolve the fake customs related concerns.  The Research Wing at CyberPeace along with the Research Wing of Autobot Infosec Private Ltd. delved into this case through Open Source Intelligence methods and undercover interactions with the scammers and concluded with some credible information.

Case Study:

The victim receives a phone call posing as a renowned courier office (DTDC, etc.) employee (in some case custom’s officer) that a parcel in the name of the victim has been taken into custody because of inappropriate content. The scammer provides the victim an employee ID, FIR number to prove the authenticity of the case and also they show empathy towards the victim. The scammer pretends to help the victim to connect with a police officer for further action. This so-called police officer shows transparency in his work. He asks him to join a skype video call and he even provides time to install the skype app. He instructs the victim to connect with the skype id provided by the fake police officer where the scammer created a fake police station environment. He also claims that he contacted the headquarters and the victim’s phone number is associated with many illegal activities to create panic to the victim.  Then the scammers also ask the victim to give their personal details such as home address, office address, aadhar card number, PAN card number and screenshot of their bank accounts along with their available account balance for the sake of so-called investigation. Sometimes scammers also demand a high amount of money to resolve the issue and create fake urgency to trap the victim in making the payment. He sternly warns the victim not to contact any other police officials or professionals, making it clear that doing so would only lead to more trouble.

Analysis & Findings: 

After receiving these kinds of complaints from multiple sources, the analysis was done on the collection of phone numbers from where the calls originated. These phone numbers were analysed for alias name, location, Telecom operator,  etc.  Further, we have verified the number to check whether the number is linked with any social media account on reputed platforms like Google, Facebook, Whatsapp, Twitter, Instagram, Linkedin, and other classified platforms such as Locanto.

• Phone Number Analysis: Each phone number looks authentic, cleverly concealing the fraud. Sometimes scammers use virtual/temporary phone numbers for these kinds of scams. In this case the victim was from Delhi, so the scammer posed themselves from Delhi Police station, while the phone numbers belong to a different place.

• Undercover Interactions:  The interactions with the suspects reveals their chilling way of modus operandi. These scammers are masters of psychological manipulation. They threaten the victims and act as if they are genuine LEA officers. 
• Exploitation Tactics: They target unsuspecting individuals and create fear and fake urgency among the targets to extract sensitive information such as Aadhaar, PAN card and bank account details.

• Fraud Execution: The scammers demand for the payment to resolve this issue and they make use of the stolen personally identifiable information. Once the victims transfer the money, the fraudsters cut off all the communication.
• Outcome for Victims:  The scammers act so genuine and they frame the incidents so realistic, victims don't realise that they are trapped in this scam. They suffer severe financial loss and psychological trauma.

Recommendations:

• Verify Identities: It is important to verify the identity of any individual, especially if they demand personal information or payment. Contact the official agency directly using verified contact details to confirm the authenticity of the communication.
• Education on Personal Information: Provide education to people to protect their personal identity numbers like Aadhaar and PAN card number. Always emphasise the possible dangers connected to sharing such data in the course of phone conversations.
• Report Suspicious Activity: Prompt reporting of suspicious phone calls or messages to relevant authorities and consumer protection agencies helps in tracking down scammers and prevents people from falling. Report to https://cybercrime.gov.in or reach out to helpline@cyberpeace.net for further assistance. 
• Enhanced Cybersecurity Measures: Implement robust cybersecurity measures to detect and mitigate phishing attempts and fraudulent activities. This includes monitoring and blocking suspicious phone numbers and IP addresses associated with scams.

Conclusion:

In the Customs Scam fraud, the scammers pretend to be a custom or any government official and sometimes threaten the targets to get the details such as Aadhaar, PAN card details, screenshot of their bank accounts along with their available balance in their account. The phone numbers used for these kinds of scams were analysed for any suspicious activity. It is found that all the phone numbers look authentic concealing the fraudentent activities. The interactions made with them reveals that they create fearness and urgency between the individuals. They act as if they are genuine officer’s and ask for money to resolve this issue. It is important to stay vigilant and not to share any personal or financial information. When facing these kinds of scams, report and spread awareness among individuals.

‍

Amid reports that the death toll in Iran’s ongoing protests has risen to 2,571, a video has been widely circulated on social media showing a man slapping a person dressed in clerical attire after an argument. Users sharing the clip claim that public anger in Iran has escalated to the point where people are now physically attacking religious clerics. However, research by the Cyber Peace Foundation has found this claim to be misleading. The research  established that the video is not recent and has no connection to the current protests in Iran. In fact, the clip dates back to 2021 and was entirely scripted.

‍

Claim

‍

On January 14, 2026, users on X (formerly Twitter) shared the viral video with captions suggesting that Iranian citizens are openly assaulting clerics amid the ongoing unrest. One such post stated that the situation in Iran had deteriorated so badly that people were now beating religious leaders.

‍

The link, archived version, and screenshot of the post are available below:

• https://x.com/brijeshchaodhry/status/2011316139423605203 
• https://archive.ph/yclOD 

‍

‍

Factcheck:

To verify the authenticity of the claim, the Cyber Peace Foundation extracted keyframes from the viral video and conducted a Google reverse image search. This led investigators to a report published on April 19, 2021, on the Persian-language website of Deutsche Welle (DW). The visuals matched the viral clip exactly, confirming that the footage is nearly five years old, not recent. Here is the link to the original video, along with a screenshot:

• https://www.dw.com/fa-ir/%D9%82%D8%AF%D8%B1%D8%AA-%D9%88-%D8%B3%D8%B1%D8%B9%D8%AA-%D8%B9%D9%85%D9%84-%D9%BE%D9%84%DB%8C%D8%B3-%D8%AF%D8%B1-%D8%AF%D8%B3%D8%AA%DA%AF%DB%8C%D8%B1%DB%8C-%D8%B9%D9%88%D8%A7%D9%85%D9%84-%DA%A9%D9%84%DB%8C%D9%BE-%D8%B3%DB%8C%D9%84%DB%8C-%D8%A8%D9%87-%DB%8C%DA%A9-%D8%B1%D9%88%D8%AD%D8%A7%D9%86%DB%8C/a-57249985

‍

Further examination of reports by Fars News Agency revealed that Tehran police had conducted a detailed probe into the video at the time and declared it fake and pre-scripted. According to Tehran Police Chief Hossein Rahimi, the individual seen wearing religious attire was not a cleric. Here is the link to the original video, along with a screenshot: He was actually employed at a carpet cleaning shop in Tehran, while the man seen slapping him was his own son.

Police stated that the video was deliberately staged and circulated to provoke public sentiment and create unrest by falsely linking it to religious tensions. Both the father and son were arrested, and images of them in police custody were published in contemporaneous reports. Additional confirmation was found on the Independent Persian website, which had also reported on the incident on April 19, 2021, reiterating that the video was fabricated and unrelated to any protest movement. Here is the link to the original video, along with a screenshot:

•  https://www.independentpersian.com/node/139891/%D8%B3%DB%8C%D8%A7%D8%B3%DB%8C-%D9%88-%D8%A7%D8%AC%D8%AA%D9%85%D8%A7%D8%B9%DB%8C/%D9%BE%D9%84%DB%8C%D8%B3-%D9%85%DB%8C%E2%80%8C%DA%AF%D9%88%DB%8C%D8%AF%E2%80%8C-%D9%81%DB%8C%D9%84%D9%85-%C2%AB%D8%B3%DB%8C%D9%84%DB%8C-%D8%AE%D9%88%D8%B1%D8%AF%D9%86-%D8%A2%D8%AE%D9%88%D9%86%D8%AF%C2%BB-%D8%B3%D8%A7%D8%AE%D8%AA%DA%AF%DB%8C-%D8%A8%D9%88%D8%AF-%D9%88-%D8%B3%D8%A7%D8%B2%D9%86%D8%AF%DA%AF%D8%A7%D9%86-%D8%A8%D9%87-%D8%AF%D9%86%D8%A8%D8%A7%D9%84

‍

‍

Conclusion

The claim that the viral video shows an Iranian protester slapping a cleric during the current wave of protests is false. The video is from 2021, was scripted, and has no link to the ongoing demonstrations in Iran. It is being reshared with a misleading narrative to spread disinformation and inflame public sentiment.c

‍