UNMASKING FAKE NEWS: DISSEMINATION OF FAKE NEWS AND DEEPFAKES THROUGH SOCIAL MEDIA DURING COVID AND CONFLICTS

Social media plays a vital role in rapid information dissemination. However, this rapid communication can sometimes be hazardous for the society as information disseminated can give rise to a situation of conflict. Some of the ways in which social media spread fake news are:

• Speed and Viral Sharing: Instantaneous sharing features of social media platforms helps information—both true and false—proliferate quickly. Until the authenticity of a false story is established, it can quickly become widely disseminated and gain immense popularity.

• Material Reverberation and Confirmation Bias: Social media algorithms frequently expose users to material that reinforces their pre-existing ideas, resulting in reverberations. Confirmation bias strengthens preconceived notions, increasing the likelihood that people would accept misleading material that supports such viewpoints.

• Absence of Gatekeeping: Editorial control, fact-checking, and gatekeeping are common in conventional media. Because social media lacks these safeguards, inaccurate data may spread more easily.

• Anonymity and Manipulation: Anonymous identities and bots on social media may be used to disseminate fabricated stories without responsibility. Malicious individuals can use the platform's tools to influence public opinion.

• Impact on Public Perception: The spread of false news has the potential to greatly influence public opinion, affecting behaviours, and even impacting political debate.

• Citizen Journalism: With the advent of Internet and Social Media individuals now have become information generators also and not just receivers. Various individuals on their respective Social Media platform generate or distribute content that are intermittently fake. This also leads to formation of groups with like-minded individuals and a false belief.

• Lack of Digital Literacy: As technology becomes more and more ingrained in our lives, we have all grown reliant on it to keep informed, connected, and productive. Since technology is developing and permeating our lives more deeply every day, individuals who are digitally literate have a substantial advantage over those who are not. It's been commonly stated that people who use social media and have low digital literacy—that is, who struggle to understand basic internet-related technological concepts—are more prone to believe false information they find online.

During any situation of crisis and conflict, dissemination of fake news increases. Many individuals take advantage of such situation to spread rumors which leads to a more chaotic situation during any crisis and conflict. It creates confusion and a frightening atmosphere. During the COVID outbreak, false news was disseminated at a rapid speed through social media platforms and it created confusion among people and scared them more. During COVID fake news is mostly spread via Twitter, followed by Facebook, WhatsApp, and YouTube (Dineshan & Ramappa, 2021). 

In the ongoing Ukraine-Russia Conflict false stories were circulated on social media. Most of them claims particular military activities or deaths without verification. These stories have the potential to intensify hostilities and aid in the dissemination of false information during crisis. During the conflict, incorrect information regarding the involvement of third-party countries were circulated, claiming military acts that did not occur, in reality. This misinformation was intended to cause confusion about the conflict's geopolitical dimensions. Disinformation tactics including the establishment of fraudulent social media accounts promoting misleading narratives in an attempt to affect views and achieve certain political goals were also detected.

The ongoing Israel-Palestine War is another example of fake news circulation during conflict as various misleading photos or videos were distributed without context, leading to false notions regarding the said conflict. This had led to the formation of biased opinions and misinterpretations of events. Also disinformation operations were carried out which intended at portraying one side as the sole aggressor, distorting information to affect international opinion and gather support for certain geopolitical aims.

In India also fake news circulated throughout the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) protests and farmer protests, a number of false and misleading reports appeared on social media. 

Examples of some of the fake news instances reported during CAA Protests in India include:

• False Stories Regarding the CAA: 
  • Misinformation alleging that the CAA will result in the rapid expulsion of particular communities.
  • False stories claiming that the CAA was discriminatory or unlawful without giving factual background.
• Misleading Images and Videos:   
  • Videos and pictures were altered to make the protests appear far more violent or tensed than they actually were, often from unconnected instances.
• Fake Quoted Statements:
  • Fabricated quotes claiming to be from political personalities or protest leaders disseminate incorrect information about their views or goals.

Examples of some of the instances of fake news reported during the Farmer Protests include:

• False Information about Farm Laws: 
  • Misrepresentation of farm bills, frequently with the goal of fostering fear or uncertainty among farmers.
• False accusations About Foreign Funding: 
  • Unverified accusations that the farmer demonstrations were supported by foreign entities, despite a lack of meaningful evidence to back such claims.
• Manipulated Images and Videos:
  • The spread of photoshopped or edited videos that exaggerate events or fabricate scenarios in order to paint an unfavourable picture of the protests.
• Fake Social Media Profiles:
  • Making fraudulent social media profiles imitating protest leaders or authorities in order to disseminate false news and influence public opinion.

Through social media, it is seen that morphed photos and manipulated videos are frequently distributed to spread false information. These carry a lot more confusion than text messages.  Technological advancements and the availability of editing tools make it simpler for anyone to change images and videos, resulting in information that is deceptive or completely fake. This ease of manipulation has helped a lot to those people who with evil mindset morph photographs and distort videos and spread it in the society. 

Artificial Intelligence (AI) has applications in a wide range of fields and sectors, changing drastically how work is done, issues are resolved, and choices are made. It facilitates the automation of repetitive and monotonous jobs, freeing up human resources for more complex and creative endeavours.  AI systems can rapidly analyze massive datasets, uncovering useful insights and patterns that people would find difficult to interpret manually. AI in computer vision enables machines to understand and analyze visual data, allowing applications such as facial recognition, object identification, and self-driving cars. Artificial intelligence algorithms may detect unexpected patterns and abnormalities in financial transactions, hence improving fraud protection in banking and financial systems. AI-powered chatbots and virtual assistants respond to consumer concerns instantly, enhancing customer service and engagement. AI also helps to improve cybersecurity by recognising and responding to possible security threats in real time, therefore safeguarding systems and data. However, everything has pros and cons of its own and so does Artificial Intelligence (AI) has. It can have hazardous effect on individuals, can disrupt the functioning of a society and can defame people.  

Artificial intelligence algorithms can produce text, photos, and videos, making it easier to create false news stories or material that seems legitimate. Language models, for example, may be used to generate realistic-sounding information that may be difficult to differentiate from human-generated content. AI-powered bots may be trained to propagate counterfeit news on social media sites. These bots can automate the distribution of material, increasing its popularity and generating the illusion of popular support or consensus.

Deepfake technology's growth enables for the fabrication of very convincing edited videos in which people appear to say or do things they never did. Deepfake is the use of artificial intelligence (AI) and deep learning techniques to generate modified or synthesised media assets, such as videos, audio recordings, or photographs that look authentic but are actually fake. By manipulating the words or deeds of well-known individuals, deepfakes may be used to fabricate stories that spread false information. This technology is also used to make videos that seem to portray political people making provocative comments or participating in unethical behaviour, thereby influencing public opinion and influence elections. This can also lead to social and political turmoil. By producing false information that damages a person's reputation, deepfakes may be used to defame specific people. In a variety of settings, such as politics, business, and interpersonal relationships, this may be extremely dangerous.

A deepfake video of a celebrity allegedly admitting to a crime, resulting in considerable media coverage and harming their public image. Fake video of a company CEO delivering bogus financial facts can cause stock price volatility and hurting investors. A deepfake news presenter delivering a falsified news story can confuse viewers and weaken their faith in media organisations. Celebrities are often victims of deepfake. Rashmika Mandana, an actress, has been the latest victim of Deepfake video technology, which flawlessly modifies and manipulates real footage (Chakravarti, 2023). Deepfakes can be difficult to identify as technology advances, raising worries about the possibility for mass spreading of misleading information. Deepfake technology poses ethical problems about privacy, consent, and the possibility of evil intent in influencing public opinion.

The proliferation of false news erodes faith in institutions such as the media, government, and international organisations, making it difficult to transmit factual information. Fake news has the potential to impact public opinion by altering views of events and prominent personalities. This manipulation can have an influence on public support for certain policies or activities. False narratives have the power to manipulate public opinion in favour of one side of a dispute, altering public attitude and support for certain actions. Misinformation may wreak havoc on diplomatic efforts by causing misconceptions, impeding discussions, and distorting international relations. Fake news can worsen social polarisation by widening already existing divides between groups, instilling distrust, and instilling an "us vs. them" mindset. Misinformation can hinder conflict resolution attempts by propagating misleading narratives and discouraging parties from participating in meaningful discourse. 

To address the issues created by false news on social media, a multifaceted approach incorporating media literacy education, fact-checking programmes, and responsible platform regulations is required. Various fact-checking organizations like, FactCheck.org, boomlive.in, work to verify information and dispel false claims. They analyse news items, photos, and videos to offer the public with factual information. Digital literacy should be taught in schools and online platforms so as to improve people's abilities to evaluate information sources critically, spot disinformation, and navigate the digital realm responsibly. All nations across globe should implement legal frameworks and public awareness programs to combat fake news. With the advancement of AI based technology deepfakes have increased as well. These can be difficult to identify as technology advances, raising worries about the possibility for mass spreading of misleading information. Deepfake technology poses ethical problems about privacy, consent, and the increases possibility of evil intent in influencing public opinion. The growth of deepfake information can weaken faith in the media, public figures, and institutions, as differentiating between real and altered content becomes more difficult. Deepfake detection techniques and algorithms are among the technologies whose continuous study and development can aid in identifying and reducing deepfakes. It is necessary to implement laws to deal with the improper use of deepfake technology and define penalties for anyone who produce and distribute harmful deepfake content. Deepfake technology's emergence highlights the importance of heightened awareness, monitoring, and the creation of countermeasures to defend against the possible detrimental influence on information integrity and public confidence.

References

Narwal, B. (2018). Fake News in Digital Media. 2018 International Conference on Advances in Computing, Communication Control and Networking (ICACCCN), (pp. 977-981). Delhi. IEEE. 10.1109/ICACCCN.2018.8748586

Chakravarti, A. (2023, November 6). AI deepfake video of actress Rashmika Mandana going viral, Amitabh Bachchan raises concern. Retrieved from The India Today Group: https://www.indiatoday.in/technology/news/story/ai-deepfake-video-of-actress-rashmika-mandana-going-viral-amitabh-bachchan-raises-concern-2458602-2023-11-06

Dineshan, J., & Ramappa, S. (2021). Fake News in the Era of Covid-19: The Indian Context. Journal of Media and Communication, 5(1), 119-128. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/354701816_Fake_News_in_the_Era_of_Covid-19_The_Indian_Context