Social Media, Misinformation & The US Elections

American voters who get ther news from social media outlets that echo their own political point of view are finding themselves afloat in a sea of 'alternative facts'. Indeed, in many cases independent fact checking is barely happening

This is particularly so on social media platforms where there are few filters between users and a wide world of disinformation, misinformation and fake news.

In August, X, the social media platform owned by Elon Musk, released Grok 2, the latest iteration of its AI chatbot. Now,  with only limited retrospective moderation in place, Grok AI tool has been responsible for promoting  misinformation about elections and allowing users to make life-like AI- generated deepfake images of elected officials in ethically questionable positions.

State election officials in Michigan, Minnesota, New Mexico, Pennsylvania and Washington have written to wrote to Elon Musk, alleging that the chatbot produced false information about state ballot deadlines. In response  X has has started to rectify some of its problems and the platform X now points users to the Federal Vote.gov for election-related questions.

The latest iteration of Grok used posts on X as a training tool without properly obtaining users for permission, rasing the possibillity of prosecution in the European Union for breaking GDPR rules.

Notable examples of AI-generated deepfakes being deployed for electoral advantage include:  

  • The Republican National Committee used AI-generated images in an advertisement that showed the panic of Wall Street if Biden, who was the presumptive Democratic nominee at the time, were to win the election. 
  • Recently, the Trump campaign has posted fake images, including one that suggested that his opponent Kamala Harris spoke to a group of communists at the Democratic National Convention.
  • Donald Trump himself reposted on his social media platform Truth Social a fake image that inaccurately alleged that singer Taylor Swift endorsed him. 

Further afield, several nations have already interfered in the 2024 US elections and US intelligence agencies have identified China, Iran and Russia as the most pressing concerns. Interference has included propaganda, disinformation, and misinformation campaigns using inauthentic accounts and websites on social media and the Internet.

In response, the US Department of Justice is seizing dozens of websites allegedly used by the Russian government to spread disinformation in an effort to meddle with the presidential election. The seizures are amongst several actions announced as the US government seeks to stop the distribution of misinformation ahead of the election on November 5th.

Before the election, several  US officials warned that foreign interference in the 2024 election was likely and the rise of generative AI and the effective reliance of many people on social media and other online news sources are making it a real challenge for US voters to know what's real and what isn't.

CBS   |   CBS   |   Japan Times   |   AlJazeera   |    FT   |   Wikipedia 

Image: cbies

You Might Also Read: 

Beware The Ghost Stories Of Cyber Space:


If you like this website and use the comprehensive 7,000-plus service supplier Directory, you can get unrestricted access, including the exclusive in-depth Directors Report series, by signing up for a Premium Subscription.

  • Individual £5 per month or £50 per year. Sign Up
  • Multi-User, Corporate & Library Accounts Available on Request

Cyber Security Intelligence: Captured Organised & Accessible


 

« Criminally Exploiting AI Tools To Generate Illicit Revenue From Music Streaming
Google's $200 Billion AdTech Business Has A Monopoly Challenge »

CyberSecurity Jobsite
Perimeter 81

Directory of Suppliers

Syxsense

Syxsense

Syxsense brings together endpoint management and security for greater efficiency and collaboration between IT management and security teams.

Clayden Law

Clayden Law

Clayden Law advise global businesses that buy and sell technology products and services. We are experts in information technology, data privacy and cybersecurity law.

ManageEngine

ManageEngine

As the IT management division of Zoho Corporation, ManageEngine prioritizes flexible solutions that work for all businesses, regardless of size or budget.

Perimeter 81 / How to Select the Right ZTNA Solution

Perimeter 81 / How to Select the Right ZTNA Solution

Gartner insights into How to Select the Right ZTNA offering. Download this FREE report for a limited time only.

ProfitBricks

ProfitBricks

ProfitBricks is a secure cloud computing infrastructure-as-a-service (IaaS) solution.

Verimatrix

Verimatrix

Verimatrix is a global provider of innovative cybersecurity solutions that protect content, devices, software and applications.

Efecte

Efecte

Efecte is a Nordic SaaS company specialized in IT Service Management, Self-Service, Identity Management and Access Governance solutions.

Leibniz-Rechenzentrum (LRZ)

Leibniz-Rechenzentrum (LRZ)

The LRZ supports ground-breaking research and teaching in a wide range of scientific disciplines including information security and data protection.

Armadillo Sec

Armadillo Sec

Armadillo provide penetration testing and vulnerability assessment services.

QuickLaunch

QuickLaunch

QuickLaunch transforms how cloud-savvy institutions and companies manage human and device authentication, authorization, access control and integration.

Telecommunications & Digital Government Regulatory Authority (TDRA) - UAE

Telecommunications & Digital Government Regulatory Authority (TDRA) - UAE

TDRA focuses on regulating the telecommunications sector and enabling government entities in the field of smart transformation. It is responsible for the overall digital infrastructure in the UAE.

Irish National Accreditation Board (INAB)

Irish National Accreditation Board (INAB)

INAB is the national accreditation body for Ireland. The directory of members provides details of organisations offering certification services for ISO 27001.

Crypto Quantique

Crypto Quantique

Crypto Quantique's ground-breaking technology radically simplifies the process of generating a hardware root of trust in an IoT device.

GCHQ Apprenticeships

GCHQ Apprenticeships

GCHQ, the UK intelligence and security organisation, offers a unique three-year Cyber Security Degree Apprenticeship with employment on successful completion.

RapidScale

RapidScale

RapidScale’s managed cloud solutions provide reliable, innovative, and secure services, all complete with white-glove service and full management options.

oneclick

oneclick

oneclick is a central access and distribution platform in the cloud, enabling the management of the entire technology stack for application provisioning.

Stairwell

Stairwell

Stairwell is building a new approach to cybersecurity around a vision that all security teams should be able to determine what’s good, what’s bad, and why.

Trellix

Trellix

Trellix is an extended detection and response (XDR) solutions provider created from a merger of McAfee Enterprise and FireEye Products.

Dutch Research Council (NWO)

Dutch Research Council (NWO)

The Dutch Research Council (NWO) is one of the most important science-funding bodies in the Netherlands and ensures quality and innovation in science.

VulnCheck

VulnCheck

VulnCheck helps organizations outpace adversaries with vulnerability intelligence that predicts avenues of attack with speed and accuracy.

Defence Innovation Accelerator for the North Atlantic (DIANA)

Defence Innovation Accelerator for the North Atlantic (DIANA)

The NATO DIANA accelerator programme is designed to equip businesses with the skills and knowledge to navigate the world of deep tech, dual-use innovation.