A municipality in northeastern Japan has deleted a warning it posted on social media about a bear sighting after the image used in the notice was found to have been generated by AI.
Onagawa Town in Miyagi Prefecture said it received a report that a bear had been seen near a child day care center on Tuesday night, along with an image of a bear standing on a road. On Wednesday, the town posted a warning notice featuring the image on its X account.
Later, however, someone contacted local police and raised doubts about the photo. Town officials said they then contacted the person who created the image and learned that it had been made using generative AI.
Officials said they had urged residents to stay alert and carried out patrols in the area. They added that, if the report had been genuine, it would have been the first bear sighting in the town in more than 10 years.
Day care centers in the town canceled outdoor activities. At elementary and junior high schools, students either went home in groups or were taken home by school bus.
The fake image had been viewed more than 4 million times as of 5 p.m. on Wednesday. The town later issued a correction.
In its apology, the town said it had posted the alert because it prioritized the safety of residents, but acknowledged that it had caused unnecessary anxiety and confusion. It said it would work to improve the speed and accuracy of the information it releases.

Quiz 1:
Where did the false bear sighting occur?
A. Western Japan
B. Eastern Japan (Correct answer)
C. Southern Japan
D. Northern Japan

Quiz 2:
Which prefecture does Onagawa Town belong to?
A. Hokkaido Prefecture
B. Aomori Prefecture
C. Miyagi Prefecture (Correct answer)
D. Fukushima Prefecture

Quiz 3:
What type of technology was used to create the fake bear image?
A. Video editing software
B. Deep learning AI (Generative Adversarial Networks)
C. Photoshop
D. Computer-aided design software (CAD) (Incorrect answer)

[Answer block]
Answers:
Quiz 1: B
Quiz 2: C
Quiz 3: B