#FactCheck: Viral video of Unrest in Kenya is being falsely linked with J&K

‍Transforming Misguided Knowledge into Social Strength

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यत्र योगेश्वरः कृष्णो यत्र पार्थो धनुर्धरः । तत्र श्रीर्विजयो भूतिर्ध्रुवा नीतिर्मतिर्मम ॥ (Bhagavad Gita) translates as “Where there is divine guidance and righteous effort, there will always be prosperity, victory, and morality.”  In the context of the idea of rehabilitation, this verse teaches us that if offenders receive proper guidance, their skills can be redirected. Instead of causing harm, the same abilities can be transformed into tools for protection and social good. Cyber offenders who misuse their skills can, through structured guidance, be redirected toward constructive purposes like cyber defence, digital literacy, and security innovation. This interpretation emphasises not discarding the “spoiled” but reforming and reintegrating them into society.

Introduction

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Words and places are often associated with positive and negative aspects based on their history, stories, and the activities that might happen in that certain place. For example, the word “hacker” has a negative connotation, as does the place “Jamtara”, which is identified with its shady history as a cybercrime hotspot, but often people forget that there are lots of individuals who use their hacking skills to serve and protect their nation, also known as “white hat hackers”, a.k.a. ethical hackers, and places like Jamtara have a substantial number of talented individuals who have lost their way and are often victims of their circumstances. This presents the authorities with a fundamental issue of destigmatising cybercriminals and the need to act on their rehabilitation. The idea is to shift from punitive responses to rehabilitative and preventive approaches, especially in regions like Jamtara. 

The Deeper Problem: Systemic Gaps and Social Context

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Jamtara is not an isolated or a single case; there are many regions like Mewat, Bharatpur, Deoghar, Mathura, etc., that are facing a crisis, and various lives are uprooted because youth are entrapped in cybercrime rings, often to escape unemployment, poverty, and simply in the hope of a better life. In one such heart-wrenching story, a 24-year-old Shakil, belonging to Nuh, Haryana, was arrested for committing various cybercrimes, including sextortion and financial scams, and while his culpability is not in question here, his background reflects a deeper issue. He committed these crimes to pay for his diabetic father’s mounting bills and to see his sister, Shabana, married. This is the story of almost every other individual in the rural areas who is forced into committing these crimes, if not by a person, but by their circumstances. In a news report covered in 2024, an intervention was launched by various Meo leaders and social organisations in the Mewat region aimed at weaning the youth away from cybercrimes.

Not only poverty, but lack of education, social awareness, and digital literacy have acted as active agents for pushing the youth of India away from mainstream growth and towards the dark trenches of the cybercrime world. The local authorities have made active efforts to solve this problem; for instance, to dispel Jamtara’s unfavourable reputation for cybercrime and set the city firmly on the path to change, community libraries have been established in all 118 panchayats spread across six blocks of the district by IAS officer and DM Faiz Aq Ahmed Mumtaz.

The menace of cybercrimes is not limited to rural areas, as various reports surfaced during and post-COVID, where young children from urban areas became victims of various cybercrimes such as cyberbullying and stalking, and often perpetrators were someone from the same age group, adding to the dilemma. The issue has been noticed by various agencies, and the a need to deal with both victims and the accused in a sensitised manner. Recently, ex-CJI DY Chandrachud called for international collaboration to combat juvenile cybercrimes, as there are many who are ensnared and coerced into these criminal gangs, and swift resolution is the key to ensuring justice and rehabilitation.

CyberPeace Policy Outlook 

Cybercrime is often a product of skill without purpose. The youth who are often pushed into these crimes either have an incomplete idea of the veracity of their actions or have no other resort. The legal system and the agencies will have to look beyond the nature of the crimes and adopt and undertake a reformative approach so that these people can make their way into society and harness their skills ethically. A good alternative would be to organise Cyber Bootcamps for Reform, i.e., structured training with placement support, and explain to them how ethical hacking and cybersecurity careers can be attractive alternatives. One way to make the process effective is to share real-world stories of reformed hackers. There are many who belong to small villages and districts who have written success stories on reform after participating in digital training programmes. The crime they commit doesn’t have to be the last thing they are able to do in life; it doesn’t have to be the ending. The digital programmes should be organised in a way and in a vernacular that the youth are well-versed in, so there are no language barriers. The programme may give training for coding, cyber hygiene, legal literacy, ethical hacking, psychological counselling, and financial literacy workshops.

It has become a matter of reclaiming the misdirected talent, as rehabilitation is not just humane; it is strategic in the fight against cybercrime. On 1st April 2025, IIT Madras Pravartak Technologies Foundation finished training its first batch of law enforcement officers in cybersecurity techniques. The initiative is commendable, and a similar initiative may prove effective for the youth accused of cybercrimes, and preferably, they can be involved in similar rehabilitation and empowerment programmes during the early stages of criminal proceedings. This will help prevent recidivism and convert digital deviance into digital responsibility. In order to successfully incorporate this into law enforcement, the police can effectively use it to identify first-time, non-habitual offenders involved in low-impact cybercrimes. Also, courts can exercise the authority to require participation in an approved cyber-reform programme as a condition of bail in addition to bail hearings. 

Along with this, under the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2015, children in conflict with the law can be sent to observation homes where modules for digital literacy and skill development can be implemented. Other methods that may prove effective may include Restorative Justice Programmes, Court-monitored rehabilitation, etc. 

Conlusion 

A rehabilitative approach does not simply punish offenders, it transforms their knowledge into a force for good, ensuring that cybercrime is not just curtailed but converted into cyber defence and progress.

References

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1.  Ismat Ara, How an impoverished district in Haryana became a breeding ground for cybercriminals, FRONTLINE (Jul 27, 2023, 11:00 IST), https://frontline.thehindu.com/the-nation/spotlight-how-nuh-district-in-haryana-became-a-breeding-ground-for-cybercriminals/article67098193.ece )
2.  Mohammed Iqbal, Counselling, skilling aim to wean Mewat youth away from cybercrimes, THE HINDU (Jul. 28, 2024, 01:39 AM), https://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/Delhi/counselling-skilling-aim-to-wean-mewat-youth-away-from-cybercrimes/article68454985.ece
3. Prawin Kumar Tiwary,Jamtara’s journey from cybercrime to community libraries, 101 REPORTERS (Feb. 16, 2022), https://101reporters.com/article/development/Jamtaras_journey_from_cybercrime_to_community_libraries . 
4. IIT Madras Pravartak completes Training First Batch of Cyber Commandos, PRESS INFORMATION BUREAU (Apr. 1, 2025, 03:36 PM), https://www.pib.gov.in/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID=2117256

Executive Summary:

A viral image circulating on social media claims it to be a natural optical illusion from Epirus, Greece. However, upon fact-checking, it was found that the image is an AI-generated artwork created by Iranian artist Hamidreza Edalatnia using the Stable Diffusion AI tool. CyberPeace Research Team found it through reverse image search and analysis with an AI content detection tool named HIVE Detection, which indicated a 100% likelihood of AI generation. The claim of the image being a natural phenomenon from Epirus, Greece, is false, as no evidence of such optical illusions in the region was found.

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Claims:

The viral image circulating on social media depicts a natural optical illusion from Epirus, Greece. Users share on X (formerly known as Twitter), YouTube Video, and Facebook. It’s spreading very fast across Social Media.

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    Post link

Similar Posts:

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      Post link

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Fact Check:

Upon receiving the Posts, the CyberPeace Research Team first checked for any Synthetic Media detection, and the Hive AI Detection tool found it to be 100% AI generated, which is proof that the Image is AI Generated. Then, we checked for the source of the image and did a reverse image search for it. We landed on similar Posts from where an Instagram account is linked, and the account of similar visuals was made by the creator named hamidreza.edalatnia. The account we landed posted a photo of similar types of visuals.

Post link

We searched for the viral image in his account, and it was confirmed that the viral image was created by this person.

The Photo was posted on 10th December, 2023 and he mentioned using AI Stable Diffusion the image was generated . Hence, the Claim made in the Viral image of the optical illusion from Epirus, Greece is Misleading.

Conclusion:

The image claiming to show a natural optical illusion in Epirus, Greece, is not genuine, and it's False. It is an artificial artwork created by Hamidreza Edalatnia, an artist from Iran, using the artificial intelligence tool Stable Diffusion. Hence the claim is false. 

Recently, Apple has pushed away the Advanced Data Protection feature for its customers in the UK. This was done due to a request by the UK’s Home Office, which demanded access to encrypted data stored in its cloud service, empowered by the Investigatory Powers Act (IPA). The Act compels firms to provide information to law enforcement. This move and its subsequent result, however, have raised concerns—bringing out different perspectives regarding the balance between privacy and security, along with the involvement of higher authorities and tech firms.

What is Advanced Data Protection?

Advanced Data Protection is an opt-in feature and doesn’t necessarily require activation. It is Apple’s strongest data tool, which provides end-to-end encryption for the data that the user chooses to protect. This is different from the standard (default) encrypted data services that Apple provides for photos, back-ups, and notes, among other things. The flip side of having such a strong security feature from a user perspective is that if the Apple account holder were to lose access to the account, they would lose their data as well since there are no recovery paths.

Doing away with the feature altogether, the sign-ups have been currently halted, and the company is working on removing existing user access at a later date (which is yet to be confirmed). For the UK users who hadn’t availed of this feature, there would be no change. However, for the ones who are currently trying to avail it are met with a notification on the Advanced Data Protection settings page that states that the feature cannot be enabled anymore. Consequently, there is no clarity whether the data stored by the UK users who availed the former facility would now cease to exist as even Apple doesn’t have access to it.  It is important to note that withdrawing the feature does not ensure compliance with the Investigative Powers Act (IPA) as it is applicable to tech firms worldwide that have a UK market. Similar requests to access data have been previously shut down by Apple in the US. 

Apple’s Stand on Encryption and Government Requests

The Tech giant has resisted court orders, rejecting requests to write software that would allow officials to access and enable identification of iPhones operated by gunmen (made in 2016 and 2020). It is said that the supposed reasons for such a demand by the UK Home Office have been made owing to the elusive role of end-to-end encryption in hiding criminal activities such as child sexual abuse and terrorism, hampering the efforts of security officials in catching them. Over the years, Apple has emphasised time and again its reluctance to create a backdoor to its encrypted data, stating the consequences of it being more vulnerable to attackers once a pathway is created. The Salt Typhoon attack on the US Telecommunication system is a recent example that has alerted officials, who now encourage the use of end-to-end encryption. Barring this, such requests could set a dangerous precedent for how tech firms and governments operate together. This comes against the backdrop of the Paris AI Action Summit, where US Vice President J.D. Vance raised concerns regarding regulation. As per reports, Apple has now filed a legal complaint against the Investigatory Powers Tribunal, the UK’s judicial body that handles complaints with respect to surveillance power usage by public authorities. 

The Broader Debate on Privacy vs. Security

This standoff raises critical questions about how tech firms and governments should collaborate without compromising fundamental rights. Striking the right balance between privacy and regulation is imperative, ensuring security concerns are addressed without dismantling individual data protection. The outcome of Apple’s legal challenge against the IPA may set a significant precedent for how encryption policies evolve in the future.

References

• https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c20g288yldko 
• https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cgj54eq4vejo
• https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cn524lx9445o
• https://www.yahoo.com/tech/apple-advanced-data-protection-why-184822119.html
• https://indianexpress.com/article/technology/tech-news-technology/apple-advanced-data-protection-removal-uk-9851486/
• https://www.techtarget.com/searchsecurity/news/366619638/Apple-pulls-Advanced-Data-Protection-in-UK-sparking-concerns
• https://www.computerweekly.com/news/366619614/Apple-withdraws-encrypted-iCloud-storage-from-UK-after-government-demands-back-door-access?_gl=1*1p1xpm0*_ga*NTE3NDk1NzQxLjE3MzEzMDA2NTc.*_ga_TQKE4GS5P9*MTc0MDc0MTA4Mi4zMS4xLjE3NDA3NDEwODMuMC4wLjA. 
• https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2025/feb/21/apple-removes-advanced-data-protection-tool-uk-government 
• https://proton.me/blog/protect-data-apple-adp-uk#:~:text=Proton-,Apple%20revoked%20advanced%20data%20protection%20
• https://www.theregister.com/2025/03/05/apple_reportedly_ipt_complaint/ 
• https://www.computerweekly.com/news/366616972/Government-agencies-urged-to-use-encrypted-messaging-after-Chinese-Salt-Typhoon-hack

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