AN IMAGE SHOWING a row of Gardaí standing in front of a large crowd of people waving banners and Irish flags is not from recent protests in Newtownmountkennedy, or anywhere else for that matter; they are generated by Artificial intelligence (AI).

Newtownmountkennedy in Co Wicklow has been the site of numerous protests in recent weeks after locals opposed plans to house asylum seekers at a disused site nearby.

Four people appeared in court after protests at the site last week.

While there are numerous real images and videos of protests in the area, at least one image that has been shared online is not genuine.

This AI image, which has been shared hundreds of times on social media platforms such as Facebook and X.com, has many of the tell-tale signs of being AI-generated.

The image that was shared on social media

“Is this photoshopped or real .. anyone know for sure?” one post asks on Facebook.

“It’s most definitely real,” one reply reads.

“PSNI is photoshopped off their backs and replaced with Garda because that’s what’s happened in reality,” another response says.

Both responses are wrong: the image has many of the hallmarks of an AI-generated image.

The line of Gardaí in the image are wearing light blue and navy jackets, which real-life Gardaí do not use. The gardaí modern soft shell jacket, which appears to be the closest match, instead has a hi-vis yellow top. 

And although six of the seven Gardaí in the image have “Garda” written on their backs, the writing and spacing differ from uniform to uniform, with some letters squashed together, while some have large gaps after the word.

The remaining garda, shown at the far left of the image and partially cut off, does not have Garda written on his uniform, but rather some letter-like symbols, typical of an unsuccessful attempt by AI to generate a word.

One of the gardaí who has his hands held behind his back appears to have mangled fingers, a typical tell-tale sign on AI-generated images.

Similarly, a number of glitches can be spotted among the protesters – many of whom have blurred and distorted faces – illegible banners. One person who stands above the rest of the crowd appears to be incredibly tall for a real-life protester.

The roadway seen in the image also does not match any near the protest site in Newtownmountkennedy. The continuous white line down the middle of the road, as seen in the image, would be unusual for a straight country road with excellent visibility, as depicted in the photo.

The images can be compared to real footage and photos posted from the protests, which show different locations, banners, and gardaí uniforms.

However, in this instance the image is fake.

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