Cyber & Info Political Work

August 1st Commentary | The Military's Image Must Not Be Desecrated by AI Face-Swapping

八一时评丨军人形象不容AI换脸亵渎

PLA Daily (解放军报) 16 June 2026

Summary

A PLA August 1st Army Day commentary publicizes the 2026 Special Campaign for Governance of the Online Military-Related Ecosystem, a joint operation between military functional departments and the Cyberspace Administration of China targeting AI-generated content that fabricates or mocks military personnel, citing specific accounts—'Chu Qing,' 'Huang Xian 1000 Fen Challenge,' 'Hou Ji Bo Fa,' and 'Feng Can'—penalized for producing deepfake military narratives and satirical soldier content for commercial traffic. The article documents the PLA's institutional framing of AI-generated disinformation as a legal and ideological threat requiring coordinated civil-military enforcement, invoking the Law on the Protection of Heroes and Martyrs and the Cybersecurity Law as the enforcement basis. This fits the pattern of PLA political work using high-profile enforcement campaigns to reinforce the military's protected symbolic status online, but the explicit coordination with the Cyberspace Administration and the naming of a numbered annual campaign raises the question of whether this represents a formalized recurring joint mechanism rather than ad hoc response.

Translation

Recently, the 2026 Special Campaign for Governance of the Online Military-Related Ecosystem (网络涉军生态治理专项行动) has continued to strike hard. Military functional departments, in coordination with the Cyberspace Administration of China, have been strictly rectifying the use of AI to produce and disseminate false military-related information that misleads public perception and damages the military's image, and have lawfully handled a batch of accounts engaged in illegal and irregular conduct. The typical cases are outrageous: the online accounts "Chu Qing" and "Huang Xian 1000 Fen Challenge" used AI to generate fabricated stories of "a pregnant woman weeping over her husband's death while carrying out a military mission"—solely to drive traffic and sell goods; the online account "Hou Ji Bo Fa" used AI to produce content such as "a soldier performing a hot dance while clutching a merit certificate," muddying the waters; the online account "Feng Can" maliciously edited and mocked military-related public figures such as the "most beautiful female pilot" to attract eyeballs… These acts not only pollute the online ecosystem but are also a blatant desecration of the military's image.

Soldiers are the Republic's iron Great Wall, the "most lovable people." Over nearly a hundred years, generation after generation of revolutionary soldiers have fulfilled their mission and carried out their purpose through sacrifice and dedication, conveying the confidence and dignity of the people's armed forces and embodying the iron-blooded commitment to defending the homeland. This weighty honor bears the backbone of the nation and the dignity of the state, and absolutely must not be smeared or undermined by anyone in any form.

Today, AI technology not only plays a role in reducing costs, improving efficiency, and driving innovation across industries, but also demonstrates enormous potential in improving people's quality of life and building resilient social systems. However, under the distorted logic of traffic supremacy (流量至上), certain self-media operators have come to view AI technology as a "sickle" for harvesting profit, treating soldiers' sacrifice and dedication as a "traffic code" (流量密码) and turning solemn national defense sentiment into a "marketing gimmick." This behavior may look like a "technological carnival," but it is in fact moral depravity; it may look like "entertainment and leisure," but it is in fact a malicious violation of the baseline of the rule of law.

A nation that destroys its heroes has no future; a society that desecrates the military spirit (军魂) will inevitably lose its way. When the image of soldiers is "monstrously altered" (魔改), when serious military-related information is trivialized and vulgarized, what is being eroded is not only reverence for the military profession but the very foundation of belief for society as a whole. Today, AI technology has made fabrication "zero-barrier" and "highly convincing," but the faster technology races forward, the tighter the reins of the rule of law must be drawn. Allowing AI-related military chaos to run rampant will inevitably shake the cornerstone of the national defense spirit and bring incalculable social harm.

The Law on the Protection of Heroes and Martyrs (《英雄烈士保护法》) explicitly prohibits any act of distorting or desecrating heroes and martyrs or damaging the reputation and honor of soldiers; the Cybersecurity Law (《网络安全法》) stipulates that no individual or organization may use the internet to fabricate or spread false information that damages the reputation of the state. From fabricating military-related rumors and receiving public security penalties, to impersonating soldiers to commit fraud and being sentenced to prison, to the concentrated handling of irregular accounts in this special campaign—a series of thunderous measures have all declared: cyberspace is absolutely not a place beyond the law, and any act that violates the law, no matter how advanced the technology, will pay a heavy price.

Governing the chaos of AI-enabled military-related mockery requires not only striking hard with the sword of the rule of law, but also the entire society jointly improving its capacity for discernment. On one hand, sensitivity to AI-generated content should be heightened, with vigilance toward military-related content featuring exaggerated imagery, logic that defies common sense, or deliberate emotional manipulation. On the other hand, when faced with information touching on serious subjects such as the image of soldiers or military operations, rational thinking should be maintained; one must not blindly follow the crowd in liking and sharing, and should verify through official authoritative channels. At the same time, once acts of using AI technology to mock soldiers or fabricate military-related rumors are discovered, one should proactively use platform reporting mechanisms or report to relevant authorities, resolutely clear away all forms of AI-related military chaos, and with rational judgment and positive action, jointly safeguard a clean and bright cyberspace and the sacred honor of soldiers.

Original Chinese

近日，2026年网络涉军生态治理专项行动持续亮剑，军队职能部门会同中央网信办从严整治利用AI制作发布涉军虚假信息，误导公众认知，损害军队形象问题，依法处置一批违法违规账号。典型案例令人愤慨：网络账号“楚晴”“黄仙1000芬挑战”用AI生成“孕妇哭诉丈夫执行军事任务牺牲”的虚假故事，只为引流带货；网络账号“厚积薄发”用AI制作“军人抱着立功证书热舞”等内容，混淆视听；网络账号“疯惨”将“最美女飞行员”等涉军公众人物恶搞剪辑，博取眼球……这些行径，不仅污染网络生态，更是对军人形象的公然亵渎。军人是共和国的钢铁长城，是“最可爱的人”。近百年来，一代代革命军人用牺牲奉献履行使命、践行宗旨，传递着人民军队的自信与威严，彰显着保家卫国的铁血担当。这份沉甸甸的荣誉，承载着民族的脊梁与国家的尊严，决不容许任何人以任何形式抹黑、消解。如今，AI技术不仅在各行各业中发挥着降本增效、推动创新的作用，更在提升人们生活质量、构建韧性社会体系方面展现出巨大潜力。然而，在流量至上的畸形逻辑下，个别自媒体将AI技术看成是收割利益的“镰刀”，把军人的牺牲奉献当成“流量密码”，把严肃的国防情怀变成“营销噱头”，这种行为看似是“技术狂欢”，实则是道德沦丧；看似是“娱乐消遣”，实则是对法治底线的恶意侵犯。毁弃英雄的民族没有未来，亵渎军魂的社会必将迷失方向。当军人的形象被“魔改”，当涉军的严肃信息被娱乐化、庸俗化，被消解的不仅是对军人职业的敬畏，更是全社会的信仰根基。今天，AI技术让造假变得“零门槛”“高逼真”，但技术越是狂飙突进，法治的缰绳越要勒紧。任由AI涉军乱象泛滥，必将动摇国防精神的基石，带来难以估量的社会危害。《英雄烈士保护法》明确禁止任何歪曲、亵渎英雄烈士，损害军人名誉、荣誉的行为；《网络安全法》指出，任何个人和组织不得利用网络编造、传播虚假信息损害国家声誉。从编造涉军谣言被治安处罚，到冒充军人招摇撞骗获刑入狱，再到此次专项行动对违规账号的集中处置，一系列雷霆手段都在宣告：网络空间绝非法外之地，任何触犯法律的行为，不管技术有多先进，都将付出沉重代价。治理AI涉军恶搞乱象，除了以法治利剑重拳整治，还需要全社会共同提升辨别能力。一方面，应增强对AI生成内容的敏感度感知，警惕那些画面过于夸张、逻辑违背常理、刻意煽动情绪的涉军内容；另一方面，面对涉及军人形象、军事行动等严肃话题的信息，应保持理性思考，不盲目跟风点赞转发，通过官方权威渠道进行核实。同时，一旦发现利用AI技术恶搞军人、编造涉军谣言的行为，要主动利用平台举报机制或向有关部门反映，坚决肃清各类AI涉军乱象，用理性的判断和积极的行动，共同守护清朗的网络空间与神圣的军人荣光。