Nigeria warns herbal remedy sellers after AI fake of health minister on TikTok
Representative image: Bru-nO / Pixabay
Nigeria's advertising regulator ARCON has warned sellers of unapproved herbal remedies on TikTok after an AI-made ad used the health minister's face and voice.
What Happened
The Advertising Regulatory Council of Nigeria (ARCON) has again warned individuals, brands and agencies against advertising unapproved traditional and herbal remedies on TikTok and other social media platforms. The warning, issued by the council's Director General, Dr Olalekan Fadolapo, in a statement reported on 9 October 2026, followed an advertisement on TikTok that used an artificial-intelligence version of the image and voice of Nigeria's Minister of Health and Social Welfare to promote a product sold as a treatment for prostate cancer, weak erection and other men's health conditions.
Key Facts
- ARCON said a preliminary investigation found that the minister's image and voice in the TikTok advertisement had been generated or manipulated with artificial intelligence.
- According to the council, the advertisement was designed to make the public believe the minister had personally endorsed the product.
- The product was promoted as a treatment for prostate cancer, weak erection and other men's health conditions.
- ARCON said it would take all necessary steps, including legal action, against platform owners, advertisers and advertising agencies that expose unethical advertisements.
- The council said using a person's voice or image without consent is punishable under the law, and urged the public to report unethical advertisements.
- Under Nigeria's ARCON Act of 2022, advertisements, including paid promotions and influencer posts, must be vetted and approved before they are shown to the public.
Why It Matters
Traditional and herbal medicine is used by millions of people in Nigeria, as it is in India, and much of it is now sold online. Short videos on platforms such as TikTok can reach large audiences cheaply, and the people watching them are often looking for help with conditions that are serious or embarrassing to discuss. That makes health claims in such videos especially easy to misuse.
This case adds a new layer. The problem is not only that an unapproved product was advertised with large promises. It is that the seller borrowed the authority of the country's health minister by faking his face and voice with artificial intelligence. A viewer who trusts the minister has no easy way to tell that the endorsement is false. Regulators in many countries are now dealing with the same mix of unproven remedies, social media reach and convincing synthetic video.
For traditional medicine, the damage runs both ways. Patients can be harmed if they delay proper treatment for a disease such as prostate cancer because an online product promised a cure. And genuine practitioners and manufacturers of herbal medicines lose public trust when the whole field is associated with miracle claims and fake endorsements. Systems that want to be judged on evidence, such as Ayurveda, Unani and Siddha in India, depend on that trust.
ARCON's approach rests on pre-approval: every advertisement, including influencer posts, is meant to be vetted before it runs. The difficulty is enforcement on global platforms, where an account that is taken down can be replaced quickly by a new one. The council's threat to act against platform owners as well as advertisers is an attempt to put pressure on the companies that carry the content.
Impact
Short-term: Sellers of herbal products in Nigeria who advertise on TikTok and other platforms face a renewed risk of legal action if their advertisements are not approved or use people's likeness without consent.
Long-term: Cases like this are likely to push regulators to set clearer rules on AI-generated endorsements in health advertising, and to press platforms to remove such content faster.
Who is affected: Patients and buyers of herbal remedies, makers and sellers of traditional medicine products, advertising agencies and influencers, and social media platforms operating in Nigeria.
Key Takeaway
Nigeria's ad regulator is threatening legal action after an AI-faked endorsement by the health minister was used to sell an unapproved herbal remedy on TikTok.
Questions and Answers
What did ARCON warn about?
Nigeria's advertising regulator warned individuals, brands and agencies against advertising unapproved traditional and herbal remedies on TikTok and other social media, after finding an advertisement that used an AI-generated likeness of the country's health minister.
What was the fake advertisement selling?
According to ARCON, it promoted a product described as a treatment for prostate cancer, weak erection and other men's health conditions, and made it appear that the Minister of Health and Social Welfare had endorsed it.
What action has ARCON said it will take?
The council said it would take all necessary steps, including legal action, against platform owners, advertisers and advertising agencies that expose unethical advertisements, and it asked the public to report such content.
Do advertisements in Nigeria need approval?
Yes. Under the ARCON Act of 2022, advertisements, including paid promotions and influencer posts, must be vetted and approved before they are shown to the public.
Disclaimer: Prepared by the Peepals newsroom from publicly available sources with AI assistance. Information is accurate to the best of our knowledge at the time of publication and may change. Images may be representative. Not professional advice. Report an error via our contact page.
Sourced and fact-checked by the Peepals Global Editorial Team
Reported, fact-checked and published by the Peepals Global Editorial Team.
