A.I. wildfire images “add to the uncertainty,” warns BCWS

The B.C. Wildfire Service (BCWS) said A.I. generated photos circulating online that seemingly show recent wildfires are not accurate.

The BCWS shared in a social media post Tuesday two AI-generated images showing helicopters and waterbombers dousing extreme fires in mountainous terrain.  

It said the images “do not accurately represent the terrain, fire size or fire behaviour in the area.”

“This can be a time of fear and anxiety and during times of concern misinformation can spread quickly and add to the uncertainty,” said the BCWS. 

It encourages people to seek official sources for wildfire information and be critical of posts they see online.

It recommends downloading the BC Wildfire Service App and signing up for an emergency alert system for local government notifications. 

The BCWS also suggests checking at least one trusted local news source for updates on the wildfire situation.

Studies have found identifying A.I.- generated images can be harder than expected.

Last year, researchers at the University of Waterloo in Ontario showed participants several images of human faces, half of which were photos of real people, and half were A.I. generated. They found only about 60 per cent of participants could tell the difference between the real and A.I. photos.

The study’s author Andreea Pocol notes that people are often scrolling past images quickly on social media, and aren’t taking time to closely examine each one.

The Government of Canada has a guide for how to recognize content created with A.I.