A 40-year-old man was detained in South Korea for allegedly creating a fake photo of a wolf generated by artificial intelligence. And all this happened when a real wolf escaped from the zoo and the services were conducting a search operation.
A wolf named Neukgu escaped from a South Korean zoo. The two-year-old male belonged to a program to recreate the population of Korean wolves, considered extinct in the wild since the 1960s. The wolf dug under the fence at the O-World zoo in Daejeon on April 8 and successfully eluded the authorities for nine days. The search involved the police, firefighters, drones, thermal imaging cameras and residents providing recordings that could have shown the animal “on the giant”.
A stupid joke that destabilized the plot
For the Koreans, this wolf was extremely valuable. By the way, there were fears that the animal would not cope in the wild, or that it would cause damage or even attack someone. Therefore, the authorities got down to work and their determination to catch the fugitive was even greater. No wonder the officers got very angry when one graphic generated by artificial intelligence made their search much more difficult.
The fake photo allegedly showed Neukgu at an intersection in the city. According to South Korean police, the image was generated by artificial intelligence and began circulating just hours after the wolf escaped from the zoo. The Daejeon authorities took it so seriously that they sent SMS messages to the residents with a warning: something like our native RCB ALERT. The police were also supposed to show this particular photo during the briefing and direct some resources to the area indicated by the joker.
The 40-year-old man, who was already detained, allegedly explained that he created the painting “just for fun”. However, the authorities did not have such a “perfect” sense of humor: one graphic made the action much longer, resources were redirected to the wrong place and, at the same time, the costs of the entire action increased unnecessarily. The police intend to prove that the fake photo hindered the activities of public administration and will most likely succeed. For this act, the man faces up to five years in prison or a fine of up to 10 million won, or approximately PLN 25,000.
When life is at stake: not just the pet’s
Neukgu has become almost a social phenomenon in South Korea that has engaged the nation. President Lee Jae Myung publicly appealed for the animal’s safe return and for anyone who came across it to help. Animal rights activists, however, feared that the wolf might be seriously injured or killed during the operation. Some schools and facilities in the search area were temporarily closed, although media reports often portrayed the animal as a lost dog rather than an immediate threat. No one knew what to expect from this animal: whether it would attack someone or run out onto the road and cause an accident. This wolf had never been on the loose before, so… anything could happen. The “innocent joke” outraged the services even more.
Neukgu was finally found on April 17 near the expressway, where he was temporarily euthanized in order to safely transport the animal. After returning to the zoo, veterinarians removed a small fishing hook from his stomach, but his condition was otherwise reported to be stable. The wolf returned to the facility after nine days, and the zoo announced a review of security measures that prevent other similar trips. Fortunately, everything ended well here. Both for the wolf and for the inhabitants of the region.
How little it takes to impede the action of the services
I remember a case when one of my school’s students called the police to say that there was a bomb in the building. This joke cost him and his parents a lot. Today, one image generated by artificial intelligence is enough to trigger a specific reaction from the administration, media and residents.
Here it happened that one man significantly hindered the operation of the services. I don’t think he thought about the consequences of his actions and would never have thought that he could face up to 5 years in prison. Is it right? Well. I hinted in the title that this would be a gross exaggeration. However, it was not the authorities who overdid it, but a 40-year-old, seemingly mature man: in a moment of generosity he decided that it would be nice to troll the police, the administration and the media. Well, it wasn’t fun.
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And then, paradoxically, the same technology was then used by Neukgu’s fans to create maps, graphics and humorous materials celebrating his return. There have also been attempts to monetize the wolf’s popularity on the Internet: a memecoin was even created presenting it as a symbol of freedom. Internet culture is amazing: I’ve known this for years. But you have to have some moderation and know the limit. The 40-year-old, who played with all of them with one graphic created by artificial intelligence, did not have the right sense (in the context of this border).
