Is a video that shows naturopath Barbara O'Neill promoting a remedy for prostate inflammation authentic? No, that's not true: Multiple online AI detectors categorized the video as fake. They reported that the images and audio in this video post were most likely AI-generated. Lead Stories has previously debunked similar claims involving O'Neill, an unregistered health practitioner, and AI-generated video manipulation.
The claim appeared in a post (archived here) of a video on Facebook on June 19, 2024. The video's caption said:
Find More 👉
Dr. Barbara O'Neill's Prostatitis and Erectile Dysfunction Management Guide
When to Seek Help:
If you experience three or more of the following symptoms:
Unexplained fatigue
Persistent pelvic or lower back pain
Painful urination
Difficulty urinating
Frequent urge to urinate
Nighttime urination
Restlessness
Irritability
Discomfort during ejaculation
Blood in urine
Fever or chills
Difficulty concentrating
Erectile dysfunction
Why This Guide is Essential:
Dr. Barbara O'Neill's comprehensive guide offers:
Prevention of Serious Complications: Protects against complications such as chronic pain, urinary issues, and erectile dysfunction related to prostatitis.
💯Symptom Relief: Provides complete relief from pain, urinary discomfort, erectile dysfunction, and other related symptoms.
💯Ongoing Support: Ensures optimal prostate health and function at all times.
Program Benefits:
Prevent Complications: Avoid complications related to prostatitis and erectile dysfunction.
✔︎Restore Health: Bring prostate health and erectile function back to a comfortable and normal level.
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This is what the post looked like on Facebook at the time of writing:
(Source: Facebook screenshot taken on Thu June 27 17:49:30 2024 UTC)
According to a September 24, 2019, statement by the Health Care Complaints Commission of New South Wales, Australia, O'Neill is an "unregistered practitioner" who "makes dubious and dangerous health claims regarding infant nutrition, causes and treatment of cancer, antibiotics, and vaccinations that are not evidence based or supported by mainstream medicine."
The two-minute clip opens showing O'Neill. A female voice, mismatched with the movement of O'Neill's lips, begins saying:
Erectile dysfunction, prostate cancer and bacterremia are direct results of prostatitis.
The DeepFake-o-meter video detector, an AI-detection tool hosted by The University of Buffalo's Media Forensic Lab, found this video to most likely be AI-generated. Its findings, based on seven U.S. and Chinese academic institutions' AI detectors, can be seen below:
(Source: DeepFake-o-meter screenshot taken on Thu June 27 19:23:30 2024 UTC)
Lead Stories separated the audio from the video and ran it through the DeepFake-o-meter audio detector. Three out of the five detectors used in its analysis also found that the video's audio clip was most likely AI-generated:
(Source: DeepFake-o-meter screenshot taken on Thu June 27 19:23:30 2024 UTC)
Resemble AI, an AI audio detection tool on a different platform, also determined that the voice heard in the video post was "fake":
(Source: Resemble AI screenshot taken on Thu June 27 18:53:30 2024 UTC)
Additional Lead Stories fact checks on claims by and about Barbara O'Neill can be found here.
Additional Lead Stories fact checks of claims related to deepfakes can be found here.
