Description: Azerbaijan's Media Development Agency reported that purportedly AI-generated deepfake videos circulated on social media appearing to show statements by Azerbaijan's defense and foreign ministers (Zakir Hasanov and Jeyhun Bayramov, respectively) about the alleged downing of a Belarusian aircraft in Russian airspace. The agency reportedly denied the videos were authentic and called them an information manipulation effort aimed at misleading public opinion.
Editor Notes: Timeline note: The government of Azerbaijan published its notice of the incident on July 12, 2025. The incident ID was created March 1, 2026.
Entities
View all entitiesAlleged: Deepfake technology developers developed an AI system deployed by Information manipulation actors, which harmed Zakir Hasanov , Jeyhun Bayramov , Government of Azerbaijan , Epistemic integrity and National security and intelligence stakeholders.
Alleged implicated AI systems: Social media platforms and Deepfake technology
Incident Stats
Risk Subdomain
A further 23 subdomains create an accessible and understandable classification of hazards and harms associated with AI
4.1. Disinformation, surveillance, and influence at scale
Risk Domain
The Domain Taxonomy of AI Risks classifies risks into seven AI risk domains: (1) Discrimination & toxicity, (2) Privacy & security, (3) Misinformation, (4) Malicious actors & misuse, (5) Human-computer interaction, (6) Socioeconomic & environmental harms, and (7) AI system safety, failures & limitations.
- Malicious Actors & Misuse
Entity
Which, if any, entity is presented as the main cause of the risk
AI
Timing
The stage in the AI lifecycle at which the risk is presented as occurring
Post-deployment
Intent
Whether the risk is presented as occurring as an expected or unexpected outcome from pursuing a goal
Intentional
Incident Reports
Reports Timeline
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Azərbaycan Respublikasının Medianın İnkişafı Agentliyi, Media Development Agency of the Republic of Azerbaijan post-incident response
A statement on behalf of the Minister of Defense of the Republic of Azerbaijan and the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Azerbaijan, allegedly prepared using “deep fake” technologies and not reflecting any reality, has been spr…
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The Media Development Agency of the Republic of Azerbaijan has issued an urgent public statement warning against the spread of disinformation via social media platforms, involving fabricated video content falsely attributed to high-ranking …
Variants
A "variant" is an AI incident similar to a known case—it has the same causes, harms, and AI system. Instead of listing it separately, we group it under the first reported incident. Unlike other incidents, variants do not need to have been reported outside the AIID. Learn more from the research paper.
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