ASTANA, October 1. /TASS/. Social media users spread numerous fake videos and unverified information for the purpose of traffic monetization and spontaneous fundraising following the deaths of 14 Kazakh servicemen during exercises in the Caspian Sea, the International Association for Fact-Checking Global Fact-Checking Network (GFCN) said in a commentary to TASS.
"Videos of the January 2022 events were widely circulated online, falsely presented as ongoing rallies in Mangystau. According to data from the Center for Combating Disinformation under the President of Kazakhstan, a coordinated network of anonymous accounts, including some based abroad, was involved in spreading them," the GFCN noted.
A similar tactic was used in a video featuring a car transporting a human body set to upbeat music. The footage was passed off as the transportation of a deceased serviceman; however, in reality, the original video was uploaded to the internet back in August, long before the tragedy. In addition, an emotional video of a woman sitting on a beach appeared on social media, labeled as the mother of one of the deceased. It turned out that the footage was shot in the Moroccan city of Tangier, and the video actually featured an Algerian woman.
At the same time, there was a massive spread of AI-generated videos. For the sake of views and likes, creators "animated" photographs of the fallen soldiers, attributed fictional quotes to them, and recreated the moments of their deaths. However, many users condemned the creators en masse, calling on others to report their accounts, especially since the parents of the deceased had requested that such AI videos not be published. In addition to the aforementioned visual manipulations, these included text-based rumors about intentionally hiding the death toll, soldiers being airdropped from a helicopter, and slander against the deceased commander.
Experts noted that the public’s acute reaction to such events fuels the rapid spread of rumors, traffic monetization, and the organization of spontaneous fundraising campaigns, which have now been officially closed. As Aina Zadabek, a media manager and GFCN expert, notes, in today’s reality, the classic rule of the "golden hour" for preparing the first official statement is hopelessly outdated. "Today, in the era of Telegram, Instagram, and other social networks and messengers, that hour no longer exists. The information field compresses instantly, and this timeframe has shrunk to 15 minutes. If, within the first 15 minutes, the responsible authorities fail to fill the vacuum with basic, even preliminary facts, anonymous sources completely seize the initiative," the expert emphasizes.
According to Zadabek, content creators in crisis situations must observe the professional rule of "4 Cs": Control of emotions, Careful fact-checking, Critical analysis of sources, and a Compass of humanity that prevents turning a tragedy into a tool for driving engagement.
Fatal drills in the Caspian Sea
On September 24, during Navy exercises on the Caspian coast in the Mangystau Region, 17 servicemen were swept out to sea. Fourteen of them died, and three were rescued. A criminal case has been opened in connection with the incident, and five defense officials have been detained, including the chief of staff and the first deputy commander-in-chief of the Navy. According to investigators, the servicemen were swept out to sea while disembarking from a boat amid deteriorating weather conditions.
In the wake of the tragedy, Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev ordered a comprehensive audit in the Ministry of Defense. He said that "military service should not instill fear and terror," and identified "irresponsibility, negligence and window-dressing" as systemic problems of his country’s military that have plagued the armed forces for years.
He ordered a sweeping military reform and relieved Defense Minister Dauren Kosanov of his duties on the same day. Kosanov had held the post since 2025, but was reappointed on September 3, 2025, meaning he served roughly three weeks in his role under the new cabinet.
His successor, Aidos Myrzakhmetov, previously commanded Kazakhstan’s Special Operations Forces. Prior to that, he served in the State Protection Forces.