May 2025 this month will be recorded in the pages of history not merely as a military confrontation, but as a chapter of “digital warfare” in which the wall between truth and lies was systematically torn down. The four day military crisis between India and Pakistan in May 2025 became even more dangerous when both sides incorporated disinformation and fake images as a formal part of their wartime strategy.
But throughout this entire situation, one side’s digital deception was more organized, better resourced, and more directly run under government patronage and that side was India.
The “Fake News Watchdog” 48 Page Investigation
A 48 page investigative report by the Fake News Watchdog exposed the role of Indian media in spreading misinformation during the India Pakistan conflict from May 7 to 10, 2025. The report revealed that Indian media, operating under government support, weaponized fake news to damage Pakistan.
The investigation documented 31 verified cases of misinformation, including doctored visuals, deepfakes, and emotionally charged rhetoric. The goal of these tactics was to vilify Pakistan, obscure civilian suffering, and inflame nationalist sentiment which in turn shaped international perceptions and deepened regional instability.
These were not mistakes this was deliberate planning.
Zee News, India Today and the Role of “Godi Media”
The report specifically criticized Zee News and India Today for their prominent roles in this disinformation campaign. Old footage of Israel’s Iron Dome and outdated clips from 2021 were presented as evidence of India’s current defense capabilities. India Today misled the public by portraying animated missile attacks as real incidents.
Indian channels repeatedly broadcast false breaking news about the arrest of Pakistan’s Army Chief, fabricated claims of Indian troops entering Pakistan, and fake reports of attacks on Islamabad. Fake satellite imagery purportedly showing destruction at Pakistan’s Sargodha Airbase was also put into circulation.
These were not slip ups this was a coordinated operation.
Operation Photoshop: When the Escape Route Led From Battlefield to Digital Screen
AI Videos, Google Stock Images and Fake ID Cards
According to BOOM Live’s investigative report, a staggering 68 percent of all fact checks in May 2025 were related to Operation Sindoor. The biggest digital deception was repurposing footage from international conflicts in Israel, Palestine, Iran, and Sudan and presenting it as India Pakistan war footage.
Fake AI generated videos showed American and Israeli aircraft landing in Jaipur. The Indian Defense Minister’s claim that 100 civilians were killed in Pakistan was also debunked.
The Fake News Watchdog further revealed that the Indian Air Force’s own official documents contained no mention of shooting down Pakistani aircraft while American defense analysts refused to endorse the IAF Chief’s claims, and a Chinese defense expert described those remarks as “comical.”
The New Face of Hybrid Warfare
Experts warn that algorithm driven content spreads far faster than factual information, fueling an online information war where the line between fact and fiction continues to blur.
This is the “Operation Photoshop” the world has now come to recognize. When success on the battlefield proves elusive, victories are staged on the digital screen instead. Fabricated events, such as a fake explosion in Rawalpindi and manipulated videos targeting Pakistani leadership, further eroded trust at a global level.
Conclusion
In the digital age, governments must build effective state run mechanisms to counter viral disinformation. But before that, the world must acknowledge a fundamental truth: when a country turns its media into a propaganda machine, when state backed channels broadcast fake AI videos, and when ministers’ false announcements are exposed by fact checkers that is not merely a media failure. That is the moral failure of a state.
Whatever Operation Sindoor may have achieved on the ground Operation Photoshop failed spectacularly before the eyes of the world.
