{"id":2164668,"date":"2026-09-25T10:28:26","date_gmt":"2026-09-25T07:28:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=2164668"},"modified":"2026-09-25T10:28:26","modified_gmt":"2026-09-25T07:28:26","slug":"british-army-veteran-conned-by-ai-ex-soldiers-pity-scam","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=2164668","title":{"rendered":"British Army veteran conned by AI ex-soldier’s ‘pity scam’"},"content":{"rendered":"

[analyse_image type=”featured” src=”https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/news\/1024\/branded_news\/e341\/live\/2442bc80-a5f5-11f1-a291-b542ee92de7c.png”]<\/p>\n

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Warning over AI TikTok fake veteran scam videos<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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Experts have warned of a growing wave of AI-generated “pity scams” using fake videos of injured ex-military personnel to sell products online.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Army veteran Raymond Gilbert, 63, from Bradenstoke, Wiltshire, said he was scammed by a TikTok account claiming to belong to a fellow ex-serviceman.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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He spent \u00a3154.99 buying a “handmade” wooden flag that he said turned out to be made in China. The BBC identified 45 similar TikTok accounts, along with more on other platforms, selling military-themed items.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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A TikTok spokesperson said it had strict rules against “harmfully misleading AI-generated content and scams” and that it had removed the content and accounts shared with them.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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\"TikTokTikTok<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n
Many of the AI soldiers’ videos feature emotional captions claiming their business is failing due to a lack of sales<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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Gilbert was a quality manager for the British Army in Afghanistan, working at Camp Bastion and Kandahar.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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“I was scrolling through TikTok and this guy came up who had hurt himself, working from a garage making flags to supplement his income,” he said.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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“I thought it was endearing, his wife was supporting him, and the final product looked good.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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\"A<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
Raymond Gilbert said he spent \u00a3155 buying what he thought was a British veteran-made flag, but it came from a Chinese warehouse<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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Gilbert said he clicked through to an external website to make his purchase.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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“I checked it, and it all did look very good; there were previous sales, and everything looked kosher,” he said.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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When the parcel arrived, Gilbert said there was Chinese writing on the envelope, and the flag was a printed image on glued plywood.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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“It is a despicable, insidious way of trying to con somebody; it’s a low moral thing to do,” he said.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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“People need to be aware that AI is getting better and humans are getting worse.” <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Rise of ‘pity scams’<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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The BBC has seen similar videos on Facebook, Instagram and YouTube, with sellers offering bags, chopping boards and door wreaths.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Many raise suspicions due to the veterans’ injuries changing, stories being copied across different accounts and the videos looking professionally produced.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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When asked about the claims that they were fake, one account, @ogudujona, said “these are made in London sir”, but declined to give details of their regiment or time served in the forces. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Technology expert Will Guyatt said he had seen an increase in what he called “pity scam” videos online.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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“The reality is these videos are made in minutes,” he said.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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“You can even say [to the chatbots] when you’re creating them to make it more deliberately emotional.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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“It’s really hard to tell the difference; back in the old days these characters might have had six fingers on a hand, but now it looks almost identical to reality.” <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Guyatt added that dozens of bot accounts then flood the comments of the AI videos to encourage people to buy them.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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How to spot scams<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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Guyatt gave his tips to avoid falling for AI scams like this: <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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  1. Look closely for mistakes in videos, like extra fingers or items disappearing<\/li>\n
  2. If it looks too good to be true, it probably is <\/li>\n
  3. Ask an internet savvy friend or family member<\/li>\n
  4. Check for the products being sold elsewhere online<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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    \"Supplied\/BBCSupplied\/BBC<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n
    The bag on the left was advertised online for \u00a365, while the bag on the right is what was actually sent to one TikTok user<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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    Senior associate at Forbes Solicitors, Daniel Fletcher, said: “Consumers have the right to a refund, but the territorial nature of these adverts means it’s difficult to actually exercise these rights.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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    “We’re relying on these e-commerce platforms to proactively take down these adverts, but once it’s taken down, the trader will create a new platform and put it back up again.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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    “The Advertising Standards Authority tries its best to inform consumers, but it is quite difficult to police.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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    “In many respects, we’re fighting a bit of a losing battle.” <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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    \"Simon,<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
    Military veteran Simon Gray said the videos “disgusted” him<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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    Ex-serviceman Simon Gray, a resident at the Alabar\u00e9 home in Bristol, said he was “disgusted” by the videos.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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    “A close friend of mine was done by an IED in Afghanistan …I got slightly choked watching these; it looks so believable,” he said.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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    “It’s on a sick level; this will harm veterans in the long run.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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    “We rely on people’s kindness and donations to not be sleeping on the streets.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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    “This is just horrific,” he added.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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    Fellow resident Leo Dromgoole said the videos made him “angry”.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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    “There are criminals, and then there are criminals, and people like that [making these videos] they’re even further down the line,” he added.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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    \"SuppliedSupplied<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n
    The websites selling the products also use AI-generated images like this<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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    Genuine veteran charities say that scam videos using fake veterans and made-up stories of hardship could make their job harder.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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    Spencer Bull, from Help for Heroes, said: “It’s a real shame that we’ve come to this position in life; it breaks down the trust between veterans and the charities who are there to support individuals. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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    “It damages the reputation of the service charities who are doing a lot to support individuals, and yet when you watch the AI videos, it would suggest that there’s no support out there, and actually there is quite a lot of support out there.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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    Faye Tryhorne, from Alabar\u00e9, said: “As a general rule, veterans are well-regarded, and to be able to support them is a common cause.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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    “By having people scammed by buying these products, there’s a risk that veterans who do need the support are left behind.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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    Content removed<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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    TikTok said it had removed all 45 accounts identified by the BBC, and in a statement said: “We enforce strict rules against harmfully misleading AI-generated content and scams, and we have removed the violative content and accounts shared with us. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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    “We continue to strengthen our safety strategies while also empowering our community with resources on how to navigate AI-generated content and how to spot and report potential scams.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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    A spokesperson for Meta, which owns Facebook and Instagram, said: “We don’t allow content that uses deceptive or misleading practices and have removed the accounts and content that violate our policies. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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    “Our community standards apply to all content on our platforms regardless of whether it features AI-generated content or not.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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    A YouTube spokesperson said: “Upon review, we have terminated several of the flagged YouTube channels for violating our policies on spam, deceptive practices and scams.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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    Follow BBC Wiltshire on <\/i>Facebook<\/i>, <\/i>X<\/i> and <\/i>Instagram<\/i>. Send your story ideas to us on email or via <\/i>WhatsApp on 0800 313 4630<\/i>.<\/i><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n

    [analyse_source url=”https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/articles\/cvgy0lz08keo”]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    [analyse_image type=”featured” src=”https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/news\/1024\/branded_news\/e341\/live\/2442bc80-a5f5-11f1-a291-b542ee92de7c.png”] Warning over AI TikTok fake veteran scam videos Experts have warned of a growing wave of AI-generated “pity scams” using fake videos of injured ex-military personnel to sell products online. Army veteran Raymond Gilbert, 63, from Bradenstoke, Wiltshire, said he was scammed by a TikTok account claiming to belong to a fellow […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[35,226],"class_list":["post-2164668","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-politics","tag-bbc-com","tag-crawlmanager"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2164668","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2164668"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2164668\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2164668"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2164668"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2164668"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}