Tell if a YouTube Video of a UFO Is Fake

A search for "UFO" on YouTube brings over 500,000 returns.[1] And, after you've managed to sort through that lot to find your favorite, if you're worried that it's too good to be true, your suspicions may be well founded. Not only do you need to believe in the possibility of UFOs (or, at least, be open-minded enough), but you also have to trust the person filming it (possibly more far-fetched in the age of video tricks). Here are some methods to assist you in spotting a potentially fake UFO video on YouTube, or any other video site.

Steps

  1. Discard the obvious fakes before proceeding. These are the UFO videos that are clearly made in elementary school, use Lego men, or state in bold letters (or shout at you), "This is a joke!". Assuming you've already put your powers of critical assessment to work at this stage, it's time to proceed to the next signs that a UFO video might not be for real.
  2. Look at the UFO closely. There are a number of obvious elements that can help you spot the fake UFO video. Here are some things to pay extra careful attention to:.
    • Can you see any form of attachments to the object that is being claimed as a UFO? For example, strings, wires, stands, etc.
    • Be aware that invisible thread does wonders and can be very hard to spot unless you are looking for it. Look for glints of light off the invisible thread as the video camera rolls away at different angles, etc.
    • Is the UFO moving awkwardly, or with a jitter? Wobbliness tends to be a sign of strings and nerves rather than futuristic flying technology. Imagine trying to keep down a cup of alien brew in a wobbly craft? It's probably fair enough to say that if a plane couldn't fly wobbling or teetering in the way that the UFO has been presented as flying, then it's very unlikely the UFO could either - after all, our atmosphere remains the same for the UFO, let alone the comfort needs of the crew.[2]
    • Does the UFO suddenly "disappear" without further ado? Do planes, helicopters or hot air balloons just "disappear"? Not usually. Theoretically, a stealth bomber cloak, 3D cloaking, or meta-material might surround the UFO but if so, why bother to reveal at all and then suddenly disappear? Did it get a whiff of the photographer whose importance was probably considerably less than that of paying attention to either landing properly or keeping the flight path straight? The greater likelihood is that the filming got awkward at that point and just stopped, or the painting tool was put to grand use.
  3. Listen. If there is sound of a UFO in the video, it pays to listen closely as the UFO goes by. How realistic does it sound to you? Or does it remind you of your best friend's attempt at making an alien tune on Garageband late one night?
    • If the UFO in the video makes noise, it's probably a fake. It is difficult to know but it would be assumed that a UFO in real life would be very careful to keep its noise to a minimum. But more than that supposition, use your hearing senses carefully - a lot of sounds can be synthesized but one person's idea of what a UFO should sound like can easily be very corny (copied from a sci-fi film or show), or just really odd.
    • If a soundtrack is included, the video has a higher chance of being fake because it's aimed at creating the atmosphere and emotion, making it much more likely that it is staged. If someone really has filmed a UFO, the excitement of it would probably have them uploading it on well before they'd thought to add some spooky soundtrack and turn it into a "perfect" video!
  4. Look at the details surrounding the UFO. As the familiar adage says, the devil is always in the details.
    • If the UFO is zooming by some trees, look to see if they blow because of the wind. If they don't, it's fake.
    • Look for shadows. Are there any shadows of the person taking the video, or other nearby objects? This will indicate to you that the video is shot close by on an object near to the person filming, rather than up in the sky. Moreover, shadows at night are less likely unless a direct source of light is shining on the UFO and it's near enough something to throw a shadow.
    • Look for reflections. What sort of reflections do you see? Remember the famous nude photos in kettles of eBay sellers - can you see the camera person in the reflection? If so, they're way too close to their miniature model! Other reflections can also be dead giveaways - anything that's meant to be on the ground, such as a car, will indicate a fake if reflecting in the object.
    • Look for duplicates in the background. For example, look at the trees or power poles as the filmed UFO zooms by. If the trees or power poles present an exact repeating pattern (looping the film), the video is a fake.
    • Does it appear that the object is tracked by a video camera that just seems to know without a doubt the UFO's next move? Or, does the video operator get tired of this and turn off the camera after only filming a few seconds even though the UFO is still in beautiful view?[3]
  5. Consider whether the object reminds you of something. If it does, it is a possibly a big giveaway of the "object" used to fake the UFO for the filming. Some common objects to be wary of include:
    • The Look For Shapes in Clouds. A conveniently shaped cloud in suitable weather might fit the bill for a clever photographer.
    • Kid's toys. Some can be convincing, others definitely less so.
    • Lights. These really are just too seductive for the amateur fake UFO photographer. From LEDs to bulbs, anything can go, and does.
    • The saucer. Literally. One kid throws it in the air, while the other one starts filming it.
    • Beer (or other) bottles. If it reminds you of a bottle flying through the air, trust your instincts. Throwing a beer bottle at a party can give people ideas if there's a video camera handy.
    • Software clones. Does the object or surrounding objects look just like stuff you've already seen on photo/movie/gaming software?
  6. Check online for information. Using the claims made in the video, do some online research to verify the claims. Things to look for include:
    • Dates - do the dates match up with other people's recollections of the siting?
    • Are there news stories covering the alleged appearance of the UFO?
    • Is there an article or website debunking your particular video as a clear Find Hoax Websites? For example, there are well-known hoax UFO videos and it's a good idea to discard these from the start before you even get excited about the possibility that your video is real![4]
  7. Use reverse logic. A really good way to know how to spot a fake is to know how a fake is made in the first place. Do some research online to find out how a fake UFO video is made.[3] Armed with this knowledge, it becomes a lot easier to spot the tomfoolery on a video featuring an alleged UFO! Some of the more common elements of making a fake UFO video include:
    • Resorting to the overly familiar saucer shape. While it's commonplace as a UFO representation, did you know that this shape has only been "popular" since 1947 and the Roswell incident?[4]
    • Throwing up lights in the background and quickly filming then. This is a very common trick.[5]
  8. Be cynical, suspicious, or at least wary, if:
    • There are no witnesses, or only the dog or spouse witnessed the event. Be even more concerned if the dog is put forward as a credible witness.
    • If the video shows a huge object hanging over a very crowded area, such as New York City, but not very many people noticed (remember your research step above here). Other than the "terrified" actor in the video, of course. Indeed, the math of anyone looking at a large building in New York City has already been done and it was found that at least 50 people out of the 8 million people in NYC would be staring at a large building every second of the day.[3]
    • Anyone appearing in the video is acting suspiciously, weirdly, or over-the-top.
    • If the sound is canned or unnatural.[5]
    • It is filmed too well. This could be the indication of a UFO geek who has spent hours poring over the video shoot, getting the colors, shades, and reflections matching perfectly, all because she has seen Fox Mulder point out the illogicality of a UFO photo on an X-Files repeat. The reality is that special effects are affordable to many people to tinker with these days,[6] and if you really did chance on seeing a UFO "just like that", it's unlikely that your excited, rushing night-time video would be "perfect".
    • Even the person uploading the video tells you it's a fake project started to help the kids when they got bored one day but it went viral and got distorted into "being real" because some UFO enthusiasts (read, people who really, really, really want to see a UFO) happened to be convinced that it "must" be real![7]



Tips

  • If the sighting is reported in a highly populated area, check to see if there is many witnesses. If this is not the case then the video is probably fake.
  • Do you know your UFO movies well? Don't be fooled by someone ripping a bit out of a movie!
  • Where did you hear about it? News? Fringe news? Viral video? An actual (and verifiable) UFO video should be top news. Censorship conspiracy theories notwithstanding, credible evidence of an alien visit should be top news. The censorship issue is huge but if it's going to get censored, you're probably never going to know the whole truth in any way that you can prove to anyone else, so don't waste your time.
  • Looking at the comments sometimes may help, especially if other people have spotted particular anomalies, or have brought in sources that clearly show the video is a fake... or less likely, genuine. Be aware, however, that most comments will be of the negative or jocular kind because it's always fun to poke fun at a UFO video. Equally, what are the comments from the video uploader able to tell you?
  • Old war movies of bombs landing are often re-digitalized to appear like a UFO.
  • Generally anything on YouTube will be a fake.

Things You'll Need

  • YouTube
  • Magnifying capacity (optional)

Related Articles

Sources and Citations

  1. ↑ A YouTube query entered on Friday August 20 brought back 538,000 returns.
  2. ↑ Stanton T Friedman, Flying Saucers and Science: A scientist investigates the mysteries of UFOs, pp. 149 - 150, (2008), ISBN 978-1-60163-011-7
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 EBTX, UFOs on Utube, How to fake a good UFO video, http://www.ebtx.com/mars/utubeufo.htm
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 Mashable, 10 Best Hoax UFO Videos on YouTube, http://mashable.com/2010/06/22/best-ufo-videos/
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 Grant Lawrence, How to make your own fake UFO video, http://grantlawrence.blogspot.com/2010/05/how-to-make-your-own-fake-ufo-video.html
  6. ↑ Dan Sawyer, How to fake a UFO landing, http://www.linuxjournal.com/article/10090
  7. ↑ This actually happened. See Mark Obmascik, "UFO Over the Rocky Mountains", http://www.denverpost.com/opinion/ci_12805296, and World Weekly News, How to fake a UFO video, http://weeklyworldnews.com/alien-alert/9972/how-to-fake-a-ufo-video/
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