Friday, 15 May 2026, 00:12
14 May 2026
Russian Telegram channels are spreading an image allegedly showing a Ukrainian Defense Ministry advertisement banner. The picture depicts a citylight billboard in Kyiv featuring a serviceman and another man hiding under a school desk. The poster includes the slogans: “A desk is a shelter for cowards” and “Sign a contract with the Armed Forces of Ukraine – be a real hero.”
This is fake. The image was generated using artificial intelligence. An analysis by the Hive Moderation service showed a 99.4% probability that the picture was AI-generated.
The Russian origin of the fake is also evident from a lexical mistake in the banner text. The creators used the Ukrainian word “trusiv,” which means “underwear,” apparently trying to translate the Russian word “trusov” (“cowards”). This points to automatic translation and a misunderstanding of the Ukrainian language context, as the correct Ukrainian word would have been “boiahuziv” (“cowards”).
