Thailand airport footage shared as Singapore scene while comparing with Bangladesh clip that is AI-generated
A video has been circulating on Facebook claiming to show a comparison of baggage handling at airports in Singapore and Bangladesh. However, a Dismislab fact-check found that none of the scenes in the video are from Singapore or Bangladesh. The scene presented as being from Bangladesh was generated using artificial intelligence (AI). The scene presented as being from Singapore is from Thailand’s Suvarnabhumi International Airport.
On October 4, an 18-second video was posted from a Facebook page named “Probashi Kawsar KSA” with the caption, “My beloved Bangladesh.” The video compares two different scenes in the same frame. The upper part, labeled “Singapore,” shows an airport worker carefully handling passengers’ luggage. The lower part, labeled “Bangladesh,” shows what appears to be careless handling while luggage is being unloaded from an aircraft. Until the publication of this report, the video had been viewed 2.6 million times and shared about 10,000 times.
Using a keyframe from the portion presented as being from Bangladesh for a reverse image search, Dismislab found a video published on the Instagram profile “thevumediaa” on April 4. The video exactly matches the portion circulated as footage from Bangladesh. The description of the video says that footage recorded inside an airport terminal shows baggage handlers recklessly throwing passengers’ luggage while unloading it from a commercial aircraft. However, the description states that the video was created using AI and was made for entertainment purposes only.
Several inconsistencies are visible in this portion of the circulating video. For example, the color of the luggage changes immediately after it is thrown from the aircraft.
Although the luggage is shown being thrown from the aircraft, it disappears before reaching the ground. For additional verification, Dismislab tested the video using the AI detection tool Hive Moderation. The results showed a high probability that the video was generated using artificial intelligence.
It is worth noting that the Instagram profile “thevumediaa” regularly publishes content created using AI technology.
A reverse image search using a keyframe from the portion presented as being from Singapore led to a video published on the YouTube channel “Boishakhi Media” on October 4. The video, titled “What kind of airport is this, where airline workers are earning praise for their work!”, exactly matches the beginning of the circulating video.
In a narration-style voice, the video says that an airline employee is handling passengers’ luggage very carefully. He is paying close attention to ensure that one bag does not hit another forcefully or become damaged. Such careful service to passengers was seen at Thailand’s Suvarnabhumi Airport. The responsible behavior of this Singapore Airlines employee has caught the attention of netizens.
In other words, footage of baggage handling at an airport in Thailand and an AI-generated video have been combined and circulated as a misleading comparison of airport scenes in Singapore and Bangladesh.
