The director of the Podgorica Health Center, Danilo Jokić, has again found himself the target of fraudsters who, on social networks, and now with the help of artificial intelligence, are abusing his name, voice and likeness in order to sell medical preparations to citizens for cleaning blood vessels and treating rheumatism.
Jokić told "Vijesta" yesterday that he reported the case to the police, i.e. to the cybercrime inspectors, and appealed to citizens not to fall prey to these announcements, but to always listen to the doctors who are treating them.
He recalled that last month, after his guest appearance on Radio Montenegro, the context of the show was misused, so a fake interview appeared on social networks and information that he was arrested because he "tried to tell the truth hidden from the pensioners", i.e. that traditional medicines against hypertension are not effective and that only the advertised preparation is effective. On that occasion, the figure and work of the RTCG journalist were misused.
24 groups make up a cluster of accounts discovered on Facebook, which on average have around 20.000 members and approximately 250 pages, and on which various preparations are offered... The connection of the above accounts with the sale of preparations is not easy to notice at first glance
Jokić said yesterday that in the whole story, citizens are the most harmed.
"In the region, a large number of medical names were misused in the same way. Although some citizens in Montenegro know that it is a fraud, there are still those who fall for these types of advertisements", said Jokić.
About ten days ago, a fake interview appeared on the Internet with the alleged "Doctor Dušan Zečević" who "developed a preparation for the treatment of varicose veins", in which citizens of Montenegro are offered a "special discount" of 50 percent for the purchase of the preparation "Varcosin".
Fake posts aimed at the elderly
A team of analysts from the Lithuanian NGO Debunk.org recently published an analysis of the content and network of websites and social media accounts related to the products of the company "Limited Charm" and came to the conclusion that more than two-thirds of the posts were either completely or partially fake.
"Tablets, teas, gels and other preparations of this company with headquarters in Bosnia and Herzegovina, but also branches in other countries of the region, including Montenegro, are sold using false or misleading information. In the past two years, regional fact-check organizations have warned about several individual cases related to these products. The last one was connected with the misuse of the name of the director of the Podgorica Health Center and the public service portal," said Daniela Vukčević, co-author of the analysis.
She pointed out that Debunk.org analyzed approximately 1.000 posts on websites and social media accounts, of which more than two-thirds were either completely or partially false, including the misuse of photographs, as well as real or fake doctors, scientists and famous people.
"A former employee with whom the analysts spoke confirmed that the network of companies in the Balkans is only a fragment of a larger network that functions throughout Europe, as well as that the products, each of which is sold at a price of 39 euros and promise miraculous cures for which modern medicine still she has not heard, they are not as effective as the advertisements promise, but they are not harmful to the body either.
The analysis conducted by Debunk.org did not deal with the content of the products themselves, but with the content of advertisements, and the channels they use to sell these products," emphasized Vukčević.
She said that approximately 300 groups and pages on Facebook and approximately as many Internet sites that are used to advertise and market alleged authentic testimonies "are unanimous in their assessment that it is about the extraordinary quality of the products advertised by some world-famous names such as Oprah Winfrey, but no address explicitly mentions the name of the manufacturer of the preparation".
"The cluster of accounts on Facebook that was discovered was formed by 24 groups that have an average of about 20.000 members, as well as approximately 250 pages that are the administrators of said groups. The connection between the mentioned orders and the sale of preparations is not easy to notice at first glance. Most of the groups and pages, by name and content, focus on religious and spiritual topics, although they have no official ties to the church. However, a smaller part of the accounts within this cluster, approximately 50 pages, are dedicated to advertising the mentioned products. In this way, the analysts of Debunk.org believe, they want to attract an older audience that not only has a lower level of digital literacy skills, but also the preparations offered are related to conditions or diseases that develop in old age," said Vukčević. .
How to spot fake ads
In September, the Raskrinkavanje.me platform also warned once again about marketing methods through which public figures are used without their knowledge and consent.
In the Raskrinkavanje.me text, there are also guidelines on how to recognize fake ads.
"Sites that offer a specific product are mostly so-called landing sites, one-sided sites that have no other content. By clicking on any of the offered options, the search leads to a link to purchase the product. A 50 percent discount is almost always offered and it's an "unmissable opportunity". The content is full of linguistic illogicalities and seems to be generically translated from another language. The figures mentioned are usually exaggerated...", reads the text published on the platform of the Center for Democratic Transition.
In a joint analysis two years ago, the FakeNews tracker and the portal Raskrinkavanje.ba dealt with the functioning of a network that includes hundreds of websites full of incorrect information, and on which various, allegedly, medicinal products are sold. Among other things, they noted that "GoSlim", "HyperTea", "Prostamid", "Parazol" and "DiaTea" are only some of the products from the website of the company "Limited Charm", which are promoted on other websites with manipulative tactics and untruths. information.
"Advertisements for these products are displayed in various forms on many internet portals in the region. These ads lead users to dozens, perhaps even hundreds, of web pages that contain fabricated reviews and testimonials from satisfied users, fabricated interviews with celebrities who recommend the products, fake doctor's recommendations, and photoshopped "certificates" about alleged product testing. On these pages, there is no information about manufacturers and distributors of such products," the analysis states.
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