Meta’s Oversight Board Forces Removal of Fake Ronaldo AI Video
Meta’s Oversight Board just stepped in to pull down a Facebook post featuring a manipulated AI video of Brazilian football icon Ronaldo Nazário. The clip, which promoted some online game, was flagged for breaking Meta’s rules on fraud and spam. But here’s the thing—it shouldn’t have stayed up as long as it did.
The Board didn’t hold back, saying Meta should’ve blocked the ad outright. Their rules already ban using a celebrity’s image to trick people into clicking. Yet, the post racked up over 600,000 views before anyone took action. Even after users reported it, the company dragged its feet. The person who flagged it had to escalate the case twice before it reached the Board.
Why This Keeps Happening
This isn’t just about one fake video. It’s part of a bigger mess with AI-generated content slipping through the cracks. The Ronaldo deepfake had a badly synced voiceover pushing a game called Plinko, claiming players could make more money than from regular jobs in Brazil. Obviously, that wasn’t true.
Meta’s enforcement seems patchy at best. The Board pointed out that only certain teams can handle these cases, which might explain why so much slips by. And it’s not the first time. Remember Jamie Lee Curtis calling out Mark Zuckerberg last month after an AI ad used her face? Meta killed the ad but left the post live.
Deepfakes Are Getting Harder to Ignore
Politicians are starting to pay attention too. Back in May, a bipartisan bill called the Take It Down Act made it law for platforms to remove AI-generated intimate images within 48 hours. That came after a surge in deepfake porn and other abuses.
But the problem’s wider than that. Just this week, a bizarre deepfake of Donald Trump went viral, showing him seriously suggesting dinosaurs should patrol the U.S. border. Sounds ridiculous, but it spread fast.
Meta’s Board is pushing for clearer, more consistent rules. They want the company to actually enforce its policies instead of leaving gaps. For now, though, it feels like they’re playing catch-up while the fakes keep coming.
*Edited by Sebastian Sinclair*
