After a sharp rise in fines for traffic violations in different parts of the country, a video viewed more than three million times began circulating on social media. The clip purportedly shows a man on a bicycle being issued a ticket in Islamabad for not wearing a helmet.The claim is false. The viral video was generated using artificial intelligence tools.
Claim
On December 2, a TikTok user posted a nine-second clip with the Urdu language caption: “A cyclist has also been fined for not wearing a helmet.”In the video, a traffic policewoman is allegedly seen issuing a traffic citation to a cyclist. The cyclist is shown arguing with the traffic warden, saying: “What kind of challan is there for a cycle? What did I do wrong? How are there helmet laws for cyclists?”The traffic officer responds: “The law is the same for everyone. You did not have a helmet, and you were also in the wrong lane. Rules are rules.”At the time of writing, the post had been viewed over three million times, shared more than 18,000 times and liked over 113,000 times.
Fact
Multiple AI detection tools and Islamabad’s chief traffic officer have confirmed that the online video was generated using AI.Fact Check analysed the viral clip in detail and observed several anomalies. For example, the cyclist has unnaturally shaped lips and teeth, which are commonly associated with AI generated content.Furthermore, Hiya, a deepfake voice detection tool, gave the audio a low authenticity score of 48 out of 100, suggesting that it likely contains deepfake audio.
Fact Check also contacted Islamabad’s Chief Traffic Officer Captain (r) Hamzah Humayun to verify the claim, as the traffic warden’s uniform in the video resembles that of Islamabad Police. Speaking to Fact Check over the phone, Humayun said the video is likely AI generated.
He added: “There is no such ruling in the law requiring cyclists to wear helmets, although we do educate them about road safety.”
Verdict: Visible inconsistencies, findings from multiple AI detection tools, and confirmation from Islamabad’s chief traffic officer establish that the video claiming to show a cyclist being fined for not wearing a helmet is AI generated and does not depict a real incident.
