How can patients verify whether a social media video of a doctor endorsing a diabetes cure is real or deepfaked?

1. Start with the source: who posted it and who benefits

First, inspect the account sharing the clip—look for new accounts, mismatched follower counts, monetization cues, or links to a single product site, because scammers commonly create networks of accounts that funnel viewers to supplement vendors like Wellness Nest and similar operations identified by fact‑checkers ^{[4] [5]}; platforms sometimes leave such affiliates and sponsored links up even after exposure, so the presence of a commercial destination increases the odds the endorsement is fake ^{[6] [5]}.

2. Compare against the doctor’s official channels and statements

A straightforward verification step is to search the clinician’s verified social profiles, hospital or clinic pages, and professional biography—real doctors typically republish or rebut high‑visibility endorsements on their own channels when impersonated, and fact‑check investigations have found many victims surprised to discover videos they never made ^{[7] [4] [3]}.

3. Look for technical red flags in the video and audio

AI deepfakes often still reveal telltale signs: awkward facial movements, mismatched lip‑sync, stilted gestures, unnatural eye motion, or audio artifacts and odd cadence; experts and news investigations recommend scrutinizing these cues, especially on low‑resolution or compressed social clips where manipulation errors are more visible ^{[2] [1] [8]}.

4. Use digital tools: reverse image/video search and metadata checks

Run frames through reverse image search, check for earlier appearances of the footage in different contexts, and inspect any available metadata—investigations have shown scammers reuse authentic lecture or TV footage and splice or rewrite dialogue to create endorsements, so finding an original source with different content is a strong indicator of manipulation ^{[1] [9]}.

5. Check independent fact‑checkers and reputable outlets

Organizations such as Full Fact and mainstream press have already documented networks of deepfaked clinicians and specific campaigns; searching those databases can quickly reveal whether the clip is part of a known fraud wave ^{[4] [5]}; absence from fact‑checks is not proof of authenticity, only a cue to proceed with extra caution.

6. Trace the product, claims, and clinical plausibility

Evaluate the claimed “cure” against established medical guidance: miraculous single‑ingredient cures are consistent with known scam patterns and poor plausibility, and investigative reporting has shown scammers manufacture fake conditions or cherry‑pick jargon to sell supplements ^{[10] [11]}; consult a trusted clinician before considering any treatment change.

7. Contact the physician or their institution directly when possible

When uncertainty persists, call the doctor’s clinic, hospital press office, or licensing board to ask whether the endorsement is genuine—several cases reported victims confirming with clinicians who had no involvement in the ads ^{[3] [4]}; hospitals and professional bodies increasingly issue public warnings when prominent members are impersonated ^[1].

8. Report and preserve evidence: platform mechanisms and regulators

If a video appears fabricated, report it through the platform’s impersonation or misinformation tools and save URLs/screen captures; reporting can prompt takedowns, but platforms have been criticized for slow enforcement and imperfect detection, so simultaneous reporting to professional regulators or consumer protection agencies may be warranted ^{[6] [5] [12]}.

9. Understand the wider context and who gains

Beyond immediate harm, the tactic reflects a commercial incentive structure—companies and affiliates profit from clicks and sales while exploiting public trust in clinicians, and some investigations have uncovered how affiliates are coached to evade detection, which means verification is both an individual and systemic challenge ^{[4] [13]}.