Auschwitz Memorial has condemned the use of artificial intelligence to fabricate Holocaust victim images as a “profound act of disrespect,” after a popular Facebook page was found posting fake portraits of Nazis victims.
The account, called “90’s History”, has been sharing black-and-white AI-generated faces of named Holocaust victims – alongside reworded versions of verified facts copied directly from the Auschwitz Memorial’s official posts.
Images reviewed by Jewish News show clear parallels between the fabricated AI portraits and the Memorial’s real archival photos. In one example, the page published a polished, stylised image of Helena Waterman-de Jong, a Dutch Jewish woman deported to Auschwitz in 1942 – replacing the real, grainy photograph shared by the Memorial.
Another post invents a birthday scene for Léon Gorfinkel, a French Jewish child murdered in Auschwitz, complete with a digitally rendered cake.
An authentic image of Léon Gorfinkel (right) shared by Auschwitz Memorial was replaced with an AI-generated birthday scene by “90’s History” (left). Photo Credit: Auschwitz Memorial / @AuschwitzMuseum
The Auschwitz Memorial issued a scathing public statement on Thursday, warning that such content “misleads viewers” and “turns memory into manipulation”.
“The use of artificial intelligence to generate fictional images of Auschwitz victims – as done by the Facebook page ‘90’s History’ – is not a tribute. It is a profound act of disrespect to the memory of those who suffered and were murdered in Auschwitz,” it said.
“These are not real photos of the victims. They are digital inventions… that risk turning remembrance into fictionalised performance.”
The Memorial accused the page of copying names, dates and biographical details from its posts and replacing authentic material with “aestheticised distortion”. One AI-generated post shows a fictionalised version of the Auschwitz orchestra – a clean, contemporary image of men in uniform performing in a pristine hall, in a place of historical photography from the camp.
Auschwitz’s real camp orchestra is replaced here by a modern AI-styled image of musicians, in a post by “90’s History” featuring fictionalised visuals.
Photo Credit: Facebook / 90’s History
Karen Pollock, chief executive of the Holocaust Educational Trust, said the use of generative AI in this way posed a serious threat to Holocaust education.
“It blurs the line between truth and fiction, undermining public understanding and hindering efforts to combat Holocaust distortion and denial,” she said in a statement to Jewish News.
The Facebook page remains live at the time of publication. Jewish News has approached Meta for comment.
In its closing appeal, Auschwitz Memorial issued a direct message to the page’s operators: “Stop using artificial images. Stop contributing to disinformation. Respect the victims.”
