#FactCheck-Misleading Video of Building Collapse in Turkey Falsely Shared as Venezuela Earthquake Footage

In the 21^st century, wars are no longer confined to land, sea, and air. Rather, they are increasingly playing out across the digital domain, where effective dominance over networks, data, and communications determines who holds the upper hand. Among these, 5G networks are becoming a defining factor on modern battlefields. The ultra-low latency, massive bandwidth capability, and the ability to connect many devices at a single time are transforming the scale and level of military operations, intelligence, and logistics.  This unprecedented connectivity is also met with a host of cybersecurity vulnerabilities that the governments and the militaries have to address. 

As India faces a challenging security environment, the emergence of 5G presents both an opportunity and a dilemma. On one hand, it can enhance our command, control, surveillance and battlefield coordination. On the other hand, it also exposes the military and the security establishments to risks of espionage and supply chain vulnerabilities. So in this case, it will be important to strike a balance between innovation and security for turning 5G into a strength rather than a liability.   

How can 5G networks be a military asset? 

In comparison to its predecessors, 5G is not just about faster downloads. Rather, it is a complete overhaul of network architectures that are designed to support services and technologies according to modern technological requirements. In terms of military application of 5G networks, it can prove a series of game-changing capabilities, such as:-  

• Enhanced Command and Control in the form of real-time data sharing between troops, UAVs, Radar systems and the Command Cells to ensure a faster and coordinated decision-making approach. 
• Tactical Situational Awareness with the help of 5G-enabled devices can give soldiers instant updates on the terrain, troop movements, or positions and enemy movements. 
• Advanced Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) with high-resolution sensors, radars and UAVs that can operate at their full potential by transmitting vast data streams with minimal legacy. 

However, 5G networks can also help to become a key component of the communication component of the military command establishments that would allow machines, sensors and human operators to function as a single and integrated force.    

‍

Understanding the importance of 5G networks as the Double-Edged Swords of Connectivity- 

The potential of 5G is undeniable, but its vulnerabilities cannot be ignored.  Because they are software-driven and reliant on dense networks of small cells. For the military, this shows that adversaries could exploit their weaknesses to disrupt the communication, jam signals, and intercept sensitive data, leaving behind some key risks, such as; 

• Cybersecurity threats from software-based architectures make 5G networks prone to malware and data breaches.
• Supply chain risks can arise from reliance on foreign hardware and software components with raising fears of embedded backdoors or compromised systems.
• Signal jamming and interface in terms of millimetre-wave spectrum, 5G signals are vulnerable to disruption in contested environments. 
• There can also be insider threats and physical sabotage over personnel or unsecured installations that could compromise network integrity. 

‍

Securing the Backbone: Cyber Defence Imperatives 

To safeguard 5G networks as the backbone for future warfare, the defence establishments need to adopt a layered, proactive cybersecurity strategy. Several measures can be considered, such as; 

• Ensuring robust encryption and authentication to protect sensitive data, which requires the installation of advanced protocols like Subscription Concealed Identifiers and zero-trust frameworks to eliminate implicit trust.  
• Investing in domestic R&D for 5G components to reduce dependency on foreign suppliers. India’s adoption of the 5Gi standard is a step in this direction, but upgrading it into a military grade remains vital. 
• To ensure collaboration across different sectors, the defence forces need to work with civilian agencies and private telecoms support providers to create unified standards and best practices.  

Thus, with embedding cybersecurity into every layer of the 5G architecture, India can work in the direction to reduce risks to maintain its operational resilience. 

‍

The geopolitical domains of 5G Network as a tool of warfare- 

The introduction of 5G networks has definitely come as a tool of technological advancement in the communication sector. But at the same time, it has also posed a geopolitical context as well. The strategic competition between the US and China to dominate the 5G infrastructure has global security implications.  For India, aligning closely with either of the blocs will pose a risk to its strategic autonomy, but pursuing non-alignment can give India some leverage to develop its capability on its own. 

In this case, partnerships with the QUAD with the US, Japan and Australia can open avenues for cooperating on shared standards, cost sharing, and interoperability in 5G-enabled military systems. Learning from countries like the US and Israel, which are developing their defence communication and network infrastructure to secure 5G networks, or revisiting existing frameworks like COMCASA or BECA with the US can serve as platforms to explore joint protocols for 5G networks. 

‍

Conclusion: Opportunities and the way forward- 

The 5G network is becoming a part of the central nervous system of the future battlefields. It can offer immense opportunities for India to modernise its defence capabilities and enhance the situational awareness by integrating AI-driven systems. The future lies in adopting a balanced strategy by developing indigenous capabilities, forging trusted partnerships, embedding cybersecurity into every layer of the networking architecture and preparing a skilled workforce to analyse and counter evolving threats. However, by adopting a foresighted preparedness, India can turn the double-edged sword of 5G into a decisive advantage by ensuring that it not only adapts to the digital battlefield, rather India can also lead it. 

References

• https://chanakyaforum.com/5g-poised-to-usher-in-a-paradigm-shift-in-military-communications
• https://www.ijert.org/secure-5g-network-architecture-for-armed-forces
• https://www.airforce-technology.com/sponsored/data-is-becoming-more-powerful-than-any-weaponry-on-the-battlefield-and-5g-is-the-backbone/
• https://www.upguard.com/blog/how-5g-technology-affects-cybersecurity‍
• https://agileblue.com/exploring-the-impact-of-5g-technology-on-cybersecurity-practices/

Introduction

‍

Misinformation is no longer a challenge limited to major global platforms or widely spoken languages. In India and many other countries, false information is increasingly disseminated through local and vernacular languages, allowing it to reach communities more directly and intimately. While regional language content has played a crucial role in expanding access to information, it has also emerged as a powerful driver of misinformation by bad actors, and it often becomes harder to detect and counter. The challenge of local language misinformation is not merely digital in nature; it is deeply social, cultural, and shaped by specific local contexts.

‍

Why Local-Language Misinformation Is More Impactful

‍

A person’s mother tongue can be a highly effective medium for misinformation because it carries emotional resonance and a sense of authenticity. Information that aligns with an individual’s linguistic and cultural background is often trusted the most. When false narratives are framed using familiar expressions, local references, or community-specific concerns, they are more readily accepted and shared more widely.

Misinformation in a language like English, which is more heavily moderated, does not usually have the same impact as content in vernacular languages. In the latter case, such content tends to circulate within closed networks such as family WhatsApp groups, regional Facebook pages, local YouTube channels, and community forums. These spaces are often perceived as safe or trusted, which lowers scepticism and encourages the spread of unverified information.

‍

The Role of Digital Platforms and Algorithms

‍

Although social media platforms have opened up access to the content of regional languages, the moderation mechanisms have not kept up. The automated control systems for content are frequently trained mainly on the dominant languages, thus missing the detection of vernacular speech, slang, dialects, and code-mixing. 

This results in a disparity in the enforcement of laws where misinformation in local languages:

• Doesn’t go through automated fact-checking tools
• Is subject to human moderation takes place at a slower pace
• Is less prone to being reported or flagged
• Gains unrestrained access for a longer time period than first imagined

The problem is further magnified by algorithmic amplification. Content that triggers very strong emotional reactions fear, anger, pride, or outrage, has a higher chance of being promoted, irrespective of its truthfulness. In regional situations, such content may very quickly sway public opinion even in very closely knit communities.

‍

Forms of Vernacular Misinformation

‍

Local-language misinformation appears in various forms:

‍

• Health misinformation, with such examples as panic remedies, vaccine myths, and misleading medical prescriptions
• Political misinformation, which is mostly identified with regional identity, local grievances, or community narratives
• Rumours regarding disasters that are very hard to control and spread hatred during floods, earthquakes, or other public emergencies
• Economic and financial frauds that are perpetrated via the local dialect authorities or trusted institutions
• Cultural and religious untruths, which are based on exploiting the core of the beliefs

‍

The regional aspect of such misinformation makes it very difficult to be corrected because the fact-checks in other languages may not get to that audience.

‍

Community-Level Consequences

‍

The effect of misinformation in local languages is not only about the misdirection of individuals. It can also:

‍

• Negatively affect the process of public institutions gaining trust
• Support social polarisation and communal strife
• Get in the way of public health measures
• Help shape the decision-making process in elections at the grassroots level
• Take advantage of the digitally illiterate poor people

In a lot of scenarios, the damage done is not instant but rather accumulative, thus changing perceptions and supporting false worldviews more.

‍

Why Countering Vernacular Misinformation Is Difficult

‍

Multiple structural layers make it difficult to respond effectively:

‍

1. Variety of Languages: Just in India, there are many languages and dialects, which are very hard to monitor universally.
2. Culturally Aware Systems: The local languages sometimes bear meanings that are deeply rooted in the culture, such as by using sarcasm or referring to history, and automated systems are unable to interpret it correctly.
3. Reporting Not Common: Users might not spot misinformation or may not want to be a part of the struggle by showing the content shared by reliable members of the community.
4. Insufficient Fact-Checking Capacity: Resources are often unavailable for fact-checking organisations to perform their duties worldwide in different languages effectively.

‍

Building a Community-Centric Response

‍

Overcoming misinformation in local languages needs a community-driven resilience approach instead of a platform-centric one. Some of the key actions are: 

‍

• Boosting Digital Literacy: Users will be able to question, verify, and put the content on hold before sharing it, thanks to the regional language awareness campaigns that will be conducted.
• Facilitating Local Fact-Checkers: Local journalists, educators, and NGOs are the main players in providing the context for verification.
• Accountability of Platforms: It is necessary for technology companies to support global moderation in several languages, the hiring of local experts, and the implementation of transparent enforcement mechanisms.
• Contemplating Policy and Governance: Regulatory frameworks should facilitate proactive risk assessment while controlling the right to free expression.
• Establishment of Trusted Local Intermediaries: Community leaders, health workers, teachers, and local organisations can engage in preventing misinformation among the networks that they are trusted in.

‍

The Way Forward

‍

Misinformation in local languages is not a minor concern; it is an issue that directly affects the future of digital trust. As the number of users accessing the internet through local language interfaces continues to grow, the volume and influence of regional content will also increase. If measures do not include all language groups, misinformation will remain least corrected and most influential at the community level, where it is also the hardest to identify and address.

Such a problem exists only if the power of language is not recognised. Therefore, one can say that it is necessary to protect the quality of information in local languages, not only for digital safety but for other factors as well, such as social cohesion, democratic participation, and public well-being.

‍

Conclusion

‍

Vernacular content has the potential to be very powerful in the ways it can inform, include and empower; meanwhile, if it goes unmonitored, it has the same potential to mislead, divide, and harm. Mis-disinformation in local languages calls for the cooperation of platforms, regulators, NGOs, and the communities involved. To win over the digital ecosystem, it has to speak all languages, not only for communication but also for protection.

‍

References

‍

• https://www.mdpi.com/2304-6775/10/2/15
• https://afpr.in/regional-languages-shaping-indias-online-discourse/
• https://medium.com/@pratikgsalvi03/how-indias-misinformation-surge-and-media-credibility-crisis-are-undermining-democracy-public-dc8ad7be8e12
• https://projectshakti.in/
• https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/02683962211037693
• https://rsisinternational.org/journals/ijriss/Digital-Library/volume-8-issue-11/505-518.pdf
• https://www.irjmets.com/upload_newfiles/irjmets71200016652/paper_file/irjmets71200016652.pdf

‍

Executive Summary:
‍

Amid the ongoing tensions in West Asia, a video is being widely circulated on social media with the claim that Iran has seized a US ship in the Strait of Hormuz. However, a research by the CyberPeace found that the claim is false. The video is from 2019 and is unrelated to the current situation. It actually shows Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) seizing a British-flagged tanker, Stena Impero. The ongoing conflict involving the United States, Israel and Iran since late February has raised concerns over global energy supply. The Strait of Hormuz, located between Iran and Oman, is a key route for global oil and maritime trade. Rising tensions in the region have impacted this route, although Iran has stated that it has not been completely closed.

‍

Claim:
‍

Users on X (formerly Twitter) are sharing the video as breaking news, claiming that Iran has captured a US ship in the Strait of Hormuz. The posts suggest that the move is a direct warning to the United States.

• https://x.com/Yoddha_0/status/2036302067011297709?s=20 
• https://archive.is/UWTD7 

‍

‍

Fact Check:
‍

To verify the claim, we extracted keyframes from the viral video and conducted a reverse image search. This led us to the same video posted on the X handle of Iran’s Press TV on July 20, 2019.

‍

Link:

• https://x.com/PressTV/status/1152597789362262016?s=20 
• https://x.com/PressTV/status/1152597789362262016?s=20 

‍

‍

The caption of the post stated that the footage showed the moment when IRGC forces seized the British oil tanker Stena Impero in the Strait of Hormuz. Further, we found a July 2019 report by Al Jazeera that included visuals matching the viral video. According to the report, Iran’s IRGC had intercepted the British-flagged tanker on July 19, 2019, after which the footage was released.

https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2019/7/20/iran-releases-video-showing-capture-of-british-oil-tanker 
‍

‍

Conclusion:
‍

The viral claim is misleading. The video is not recent and does not show Iran capturing a US ship. It is from 2019 and depicts the seizure of the British tanker Stena Impero by Iran’s IRGC.