Taylor Swift’s wedding photos are going viral on the internet. There’s just one problem.

Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce have yet to release official wedding photos, but that hasn’t stopped fake photos from circulating online.

In the absence of real photos, AI-generated photos filled the gap, turning one of the year’s biggest celebrity events into the latest example of a growing internet trend. When people are desperate to see something, AI can create a version of the real photo before it even exists online, potentially fooling people in the process.

The July 3rd wedding reportedly took over Madison Square Garden and had a celebrity-studded guest list, but surprisingly little has actually been leaked.

While there were details, exterior photos, and guest comments, there were no official images of Swift and Kelce at the ceremony or reception. Their marriage was announced on a JUST&T Wedding sign outside Madison Square Garden and in a press release from Swift’s publicist Tree Payne. According to the release, Swift and Kelsea’s wedding looks were created by Christian Dior Haute Couture. Their shoes were custom Christian Louboutins. Swift wore Cartier jewelry. Austin Swift served as her “man of honor.” Jason Kelsey was Kelsey’s chaperone. Adam Sandler served as master of ceremonies.

But so far, the main thing fans still don’t have is what they usually want most: photos.

This left plenty of room for fakes. After the wedding, AI-generated images claiming to show the ceremony and reception began circulating on social media. Some showed Swift and Kelsea in their wedding attire. Some people insisted on being shown inside the venue. In one photo, Swift and Sabrina Carpenter are side by side, and in another, they’re drinking Cosmopolitans. Many people, including myself, believed that at least one of the photos was real.

That was until Joseph Kahn, the director of several of Swift’s music videos, including “Blank Space” and “Look What You Made Me Do,” slammed X’s imagery. Khan, who attended the wedding, claimed that all the wedding photos circulating online were fake, effectively putting an end to the rumors.

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Swift and Kelsey’s wedding was already inspiring fake AI content before the ceremony. Comedian Bert Kreischer posted an AI-generated image of himself standing with Swift and Kelsea as if they were attending a wedding, and Kelsea responded with a crying-laughing emoji in the comments section. In that case, the image was clearly a joke. But after the actual wedding, it became difficult to distinguish similar AI images from real rumors, fan edits, and possible leaks.

Fake celebrity wedding photos are becoming part of the online news cycle. Earlier this year, Zendaya addressed an AI-generated image that appeared to show her wedding to Tom Holland. She said people in her real life believed the fake photo and complimented her, only for her to explain that it wasn’t real. Zendaya’s stylist Law Roach criticized the AI-generated wedding dress on Good Morning America, saying, “That dress wasn’t good enough. Trust me, that dress was better than that.”

Dua Lipa and Callum Turner were also the subject of fake AI wedding photos in June. Images have gone viral on social media claiming the couple are celebrating in Sicily. The photo was reportedly created by Italian digital artist Rick Dick and was originally posted as an AI-generated image. However, when images were reposted elsewhere, their context was often lost, leading some users to believe they were real.

That’s the sloppiness of a lot of AI these days. A photo may start as a joke, be an obvious edit, or be a clearly labeled AI post. But if you screenshot it, crop it, repost it, or share it on another account, the original caption can disappear, and by the time it reaches a wider audience, it might no longer look like a meme. It may look like a leak.

Swift is also not new to the darker side of AI-generated images. She has previously been the target of AI fakes using her likeness, including political images that falsely imply her support. In April, Swift’s company, TAS Rights Management, filed a trademark application related to her voice and image, including the spoken words “Hi, I’m Taylor Swift” and “Hey, Taylor” and certain Ellas tour images of Swift holding and playing a pink guitar.

She’s not the only celebrity trying to get ahead of the issue. Matthew McConaughey is urging other celebrities to protect their voices and likenesses in the age of AI, securing trademarks related to his persona, including his famous catchphrase “It’s okay, it’s okay, it’s okay.” Other celebrities are also starting to file trademark applications associated with their voices, faces, and signature phrases, as AI tools can easily generate realistic-looking and sounding versions of real people.

The legal situation remains confusing. Right-of-publicity laws can protect individuals from unauthorized commercial use of their name, image, and likeness, but protections vary by state. Trademark law may give celebrities another tool, but it’s not a perfect shield against all AI fakery. Federal laws such as the Anti-Fake Act and the Take It Down Act have been proposed to target unauthorized copying of people’s voices and likenesses generated by AI, but debate continues over how to regulate this technology.

How to tell if an image was generated by AI

There are some ways to be more careful with images of celebrities online. First, check the source of the image. Real celebrity wedding photos usually come from official accounts, reputable publications, photo agencies, or confirmed guests. Posts that use ambiguous terms such as “leak,” “reported,” “first look,” or “fan thoughts” should be treated with caution, especially when there is no clear source.

It also helps to look for signs that the image may have been generated or altered. Weird hands, inconsistent faces, odd lighting, blurry backgrounds, incorrect clothing details, and unreadable text can all be clues. But AI images are getting better, so the source is more important than the image itself.

For Swift and Kelsey, the safest rule is simple. If the photo isn’t from the couple, their team, a confirmed guest, a photo agency, or a reputable outlet that explains the photo’s origin, it’s worth approaching it with a healthy dose of skepticism. You need to calm down until the newlyweds say otherwise.