Footage Depicting Combat Between Russia and Ukraine Is Actually From Video Games

Facebook users are sharing the clips as though they are real.

By
4
Screenshot of an Arma 3 simulation posted on Facebook.

A number of videos have recently circulated on Facebook depicting combat between Russian and Ukrainian forces. The videos, which portray scenes such as a “top-secret” Russian aircraft carrier being sunk by a Ukrainian F-16 and a Ukrainian SU-24 bomber sinking another Russian ship are often shared on the site as if they are real footage. However, these videos are actually clips from Arma 3, a popular military simulation video game.

When viewed quickly or in low resolution the footage can look deceptively real, but upon closer viewing the recordings can be clearly recognized as digitally generated. The Associated Press previously identified one YouTube channel as the creator of some of these videos, and The Dispatch Fact Check found a number of other channels with similar content. Though the YouTube channels themselves state that their videos depict simulations and not real combat, many of the social media accounts reposting those are doing so with the intent to deceive users by passing them off as real. Some of these posts have received thousands of likes.

Bohemia Interactive, the developer of Arma 3, has previously recognized that some footage from the game has been used for disinformation.

If you have a claim you would like to see us fact check, please send us an email at factcheck@thedispatch.com. If you would like to suggest a correction to this piece or any other Dispatch article, please email corrections@thedispatch.com.

4
By
Comments (4)
Join The Dispatch to participate in the comments.
 
  1. Avatar photo
    CynthiaW

    Do you think Facebook users are sharing this knowing that it is fictional, or that they are just fools?

    Collapse
    1. Avatar photocircle-angle-nib
      Alex Demas vertical-nib Author

      It's hard to say. Given the volume, I'd guess that most of the accounts sharing the content originally are doing so with the intent to deceive, but many of the people disseminating it from there are probably doing so unknowingly. Always difficult to assign motive, but there have been dozens of these posts popping up daily, so it seems like there's likely some sort of coordination behind it.

      Collapse
      1. Philebus

        Thank you. In the grand scheme of things, it probably makes no difference, but it's amazing what sparks interest in people and the motivations behind it all.

        Collapse
      2. Avatar photo
        CynthiaW

        Thanks for the reply. That's really interesting.

        Collapse