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What this does not cover<\/h2>\n
A block inside one company\u2019s tools is not a block on the whole internet. In practical terms:<\/p>\n
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- It applies to the tools of the company making the commitment. Other image generators, including open-source models that people run on their own computers, are not bound by it.<\/li>\n
- It focuses on images of listed candidates. Fake audio, edited video, invented quotes, doctored result sheets and fake screenshots of news websites are separate problems.<\/li>\n
- Older tricks still work. A real photo with a false caption, or a genuine video from a different year presented as new, needs no AI at all and is often more convincing.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
So the sensible approach is to welcome the safeguard while continuing to check what you see and share.<\/p>\n
INEC\u2019s own use of AI<\/h2>\n
INEC is also adopting AI, but in a deliberately controlled way. At the forum, INEC Chairman Joash Amupitan said the commission had set up an AI unit to strengthen its digital infrastructure, including results management, and noted that AI-based security tools can help detect attacks such as denial-of-service and password brute-forcing. Speaking at an international conference in Ottawa in September, he said AI must remain under human control and act as a support tool rather than a replacement for human decisions, and described a results process that compares digitised result sheets with BVAS records and flags discrepancies for officials rather than changing results.<\/p>\n
Civil society groups at the Abuja forum stressed that any AI used in elections must be accurate, transparent and auditable, and that rebuilding public trust is a major challenge ahead of 2027.<\/p>\n
How to check a suspicious image, video or audio clip<\/h2>\n
You do not need specialist software to catch most fakes. Work through these checks before you react or forward anything:<\/p>\n
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- Pause.<\/strong> Content designed to make you angry, frightened or excited is designed to be shared quickly. A short delay is your best defence.<\/li>\n
- Check the source.<\/strong> Who first posted it? Is it a verified account of a known news organisation, party or official body, or an anonymous page created recently?<\/li>\n
- Look for the same story elsewhere.<\/strong> If something major happened, several reputable outlets will report it. If only one page has it, be sceptical.<\/li>\n
- Run a reverse image search.<\/strong> Tools such as Google Lens or TinEye can show whether a picture appeared earlier in a different context.<\/li>\n
- Look closely at details.<\/strong> AI images can still show odd hands, jumbled text on posters, mismatched lighting or strange backgrounds, although these flaws are becoming less common, so their absence proves nothing.<\/li>\n
- Listen carefully to audio.<\/strong> Flat emotion, unusual pauses or a voice that does not match the setting are warning signs. When in doubt, look for the original recording.<\/li>\n
- Check fact-checkers.<\/strong> Nigerian and African fact-checking organisations regularly publish verdicts on viral claims.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
What businesses and communicators should do<\/h2>\n
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- Set a rule for staff:<\/strong> no forwarding of unverified political content from company accounts or official WhatsApp groups.<\/li>\n
- Protect your own brand:<\/strong> criminals also use AI to fake voices and images of business leaders for fraud. Agree a call-back procedure for any unusual payment request, even one that seems to come from the boss.<\/li>\n
- Label your own AI content:<\/strong> if you use AI to create marketing images, say so. Being transparent builds trust at a time when audiences are becoming more suspicious.<\/li>\n
- Report fakes:<\/strong> use platform reporting tools when you see manipulated content about candidates or officials, since tech accord signatories have committed to removing it.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
AI will be part of the 2027 election season, for better and for worse. Company safeguards help, but careful, sceptical users remain the most effective filter.<\/p>\n
Sources<\/h3>\n
- Protect your own brand:<\/strong> criminals also use AI to fake voices and images of business leaders for fraud. Agree a call-back procedure for any unusual payment request, even one that seems to come from the boss.<\/li>\n
- Check the source.<\/strong> Who first posted it? Is it a verified account of a known news organisation, party or official body, or an anonymous page created recently?<\/li>\n
- Pause.<\/strong> Content designed to make you angry, frightened or excited is designed to be shared quickly. A short delay is your best defence.<\/li>\n