Did ICE post an AI-generated image on its X account to make a point that it was not only protesters but also supporters who showed up in Portland, Oregon, in early October 2025? Here's what we know so far: Lead Stories asked, but ICE had not at the time of publication released to us the original image file. When ICE does, Lead Stories will be able to conduct a thorough analysis without the privacy screen ICE placed over the supporter's face before posting the image to X. The background has been traced to a real location in Portland. The image does not include the more obvious visual artifacts of the kind found in some AI images.
The image appeared in a post (archived here) published by the official account of ICE on X on October 9, 2025. The caption read:
PORTLAND -- Not all outside of our ICE facility are violent. Thank you!
In the image, social media users saw a person holding a sign that read:
I REALLY APPRECIATE YOU GUYS!
This is what the picture in question looked like on X at the time of writing:
(Image source: Lead Stories screenshot of image at x.com/ICEgov.)
Visual analysis
Social media users raised questions about the image's authenticity. For example, one post (archived here) raised the same questions as others:
Missing an arm, the sign, no shadows....
The person's left arm is not missing, as sometimes happens to human limbs in AI-generated videos and still images. In this case, the arm appears to be held back and down, with the person's hoody slipping down off the left shoulder. If ICE releases the original image without the face-blur, Lead Stories can submit it to photo experts to determine if the arm is naturally positioned, or the creation of generative AI.
The sign is in legible English alphabet, something generative AI often fails to produce, creating instead a jumble of letter-like shapes. This sign clearly spells out: "I really appreciate you guys!" with no unrecognizable letter shapes.
The thumb squeezing the front of the sign is markedly lighter-colored than the visible parts of the palm and wrist. This could indicate poor rendering by AI or poor circulation in a hand being held aloft or a skin variation on the person's hand. It may also be a contrast against a tattooed or shirt-cuffed wrist.
Shadows are often missing, or incorrectly rendered relative to the position of light sources in an AI image. The scene shown in the ICE image is not brightly lit, consistent with Portland weather October 4-10 of 2025, (archived here) which featured only one clear/sunny day. Here, the metadata of the original image will be useful to match the date and time to Portland weather reports and to enable some AI detection tools to assess shadow angles. While there are slight shadows under the toes of the person's shoes and at the base of the adjacent building facade, they are generally consistent with one another.
AI "Sniffer" Analysis
When Lead Stories ran the image through online AI detectors recommended by various journalistic investigative communities, they found slight evidence of generative AI. Yet, the overall results were not definitive enough to declare the image a fake.
(Image source: Lead Stories screenshot of AI or Not)
The visual details of the background match precisely to a real location findable in Street View on Google Maps here:
(Image source: Lead Stories screenshot of Google Maps)
Though paint conditions differ between the Google Maps image and the ICE image, the structure shows the same construction details in the facade, down to the discontinuous framing at the base of the wall.
Triangulation Yields No Duplicates
During major news events, it is sometimes possible to find other photos of the same event or scene and compare the details to check if an image has been manipulated or made up.
Lead Stories manually browsed numerous news reports and videos related to protests against ICE in Portland, Oregon, but did not find the specific scene in question documented anywhere else by a credible source.
Reverse image searches did not lead to any other earlier source of the picture and did not produce other photos documenting the ICE supporter with that sign.from this specific location in Portland.
In addition to asking ICE for an examination version of the original image, Lead Stories reached out to the occupants at 555 SW Bancroft, the address shown in the image.
If we receive replies or discover any other substantial relevant piece of information, this story will be updated, as appropriate.
