Can you stop harmful spread of hoaxes on Internet? British researchers believe so. They developed an AI can stop fake news before it spreads. “Fake news” is an ugly term that became known primarily through former US President Donald Trump and usually meant fake news. “News” is manipulated so that readers get the impression that they are real.
Often they are flawed, deliberately misleading or made up. The problem: Because they appear so believable, they spread quickly on the Internet – primarily via social media. Tragically, such hoaxes spread faster than real news.
AI Can Stop Fake News: Once In Circulation, Fake News Can Hardly Be Stopped
Afterwards, it is next to impossible to distribute the corrections of these false reports or show users that the information is not correct at all. Therefore, to stop the spread of fake news, you have to act very quickly.
That is why researchers at University College London have developed an effective “early warning system”. Behind this is a self-learning algorithm that can recognize these false reports in real-time and sound an alarm before they spread.
Early Warning System For False Reports
The intelligent algorithm concentrates on domains from which such false reports are likely to originate. In particular, the registration data of these domains are very informative, says one of the study authors Anil Doshi. For example, anonymously registered domains are platforms from which fake news originated.
“By using data for domain registration, we offer an early warning system because we are using data that is difficult for those involved to manipulate. The actors who produce false information tend to want to remain hidden. We use that in our model.”
Artificial intelligence (AI) is programmed to detect fake news channels very reliably. The tool was able to assign 92 per cent of the fake news domains correctly and 96.2 percent of the parts with non-falsified information.
Forecast: It Will Get Worse
The starting point for the tests were domains registered in connection with the US elections in 2016. The researchers believe their AI can help agencies and platforms spot false positives. These could then stop not only fake news but also block the domains.
Realistically speaking, the researchers assume that the spread of such false reports before elections will always increase. In your opinion, this will tend to be more than less in the future.
Stop Fake News: Platforms Have To Act Too
Therefore, they also clearly demand from social media platforms and digital companies: They should invest in intelligent technologies to stop the spread of fake news themselves.
The tool that the British researchers developed is currently working very well. But it is only a matter of time before the relevant actors adjust their behavior. Therefore, research must continue to be on the ball.
Often they are flawed, deliberately misleading or made up. The problem: Because they appear so believable, they spread quickly on the Internet – primarily via social media. That is why researchers at University College London have developed an effective “early warning system”. The actors who produce false information tend to want to remain hidden. We use that in our model.”
Artificial intelligence is programmed to detect fake news channels very reliably.
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