Author: Cvanhoek99

Disinformation and the weaponization of the internet.

Being a political science major, naturally I had to look at the impact disinformation has on politics and security. Normally, most people’s common interaction with falsities on the internet comes in the form of pranks or trolling. However, disinformation can be significantly more harmful to people than putting glue in your pizza (at least the Google AI specified non-toxic). Countries opposed to the United States and non state actors can use social media and other websites to attempt to influence US politics. This was evident in the 2016 Presidential election, when Russia used Facebook, Twitter and other platforms to circulate false information regarding election integrity. Bots and troll farms post hundreds of false, inflammatory, or controversial statements with the intent of sowing division in the United States and increasing political polarization. For further information, Stanford University published a guide to disinformation and how to spot it.

How A.I. impacts disinformation.

A.I. as a tool of propaganda.

A.I. essentially multiplies the amount of disinformation and misinformation that can be spread. Hostile actors intentionally spreading disinformation is not new, but 20 years ago you had to have a human sitting behind a computer thinking of and writing fake news stories, articles, posts, etc. But, with the advent and increasingly rapid availability of A.I. software, that person behind the computer simply has to enter in a prompt and A.I. will take it from there. More recently, the use of A.I. to falsify pictures or videos can greatly increase the speed at which these are developed and circulated. Using A.I. does not require a camera crew and video editors to produce a false video. It can also create very realistic deepfakes of people, and have that person say false, or inflammatory statements. Stanford once again has excellent information regarding the use of A.I. for the purposes of spreading propaganda.

Using Copilot

My interaction with Copilot A.I.

You
Sent by you:
Generate me a title for blogpost about "what is real on the internet?"

Copilot
Sent by Copilot:
Sure! Here are a few title ideas for your blog post:
“Unmasking the Web: Deciphering What’s Real on the Internet”
“Truth vs. Fiction: Navigating Reality in the Digital Age”
“The Internet’s Illusions: How to Spot Real from Fake”
“Digital Deception: Understanding Authenticity Online”
“Fact or Fabrication? A Guide to Internet Realities”
Do any of these resonate with you?

You
Sent by you:
Can you provide more options?

Copilot
Sent by Copilot:
Absolutely! Here are some additional title ideas for your blog post:
“Internet Realities: Separating Fact from Fiction Online”
“Behind the Screen: What’s Real on the Internet?”
“Virtual Veracity: Identifying Truth in the Digital World”
“The Reality Check: Unveiling Truths on the Web”
“Navigating the Web: How to Discern Real from Fake”
“Digital Truths: What’s Authentic on the Internet?”
“The Internet’s Mirage: Finding Authenticity in a Sea of Information”
**"Fact-Checking the Web: A Guide to Online Authenticity

Why I chose my title.

I chose my title because I liked the imagery evoked by “unmasking the web”. To me, this felt like a good title as I highlight throughout my blogpost some ways countries can use the web and A.I. as a weapon for political gain. I’d like to imagine that by exposing these harmful disinformation actors it has almost as much effect as unmasking a villain in Scooby Doo does. I believe this title falls a little bit to the right on the truth spectrum. I believe it is an exaggerated title, dramatizing what is honestly a basic informative post into what someone would think would be a much more in depth look into disinformation. However, I believe the title does not mislead the audience, but more so increases engagement.

Openness

Openness on the internet or the web refers to the ability that anyone with access to the internet has to post or create something and share that with others. To read more in depth about internet accessibility check out The Internet Policy Review.

Why?

Making open content allows your creation or whatever it is you decide to post reach the largest amount of viewers. This can seriously inspire other people working on their own passion projects or simply help someone fix a common household problem.

How?

Making open content and sharing it on the web can be as simple as making a public twitter post or uploading a tutorial video on Youtube. However, you can also use openly available content to make a profit, such as by running advertisements or sponsorships on your video.

Accessibility

Accessibility is ensuring that the content you create or share publicly is available and usable by the most amount of people possibly.

Why?

Ensuring content is accessible to the most people possible is important from a moral but also a more pragmatic side. First of all, content should be accessible because it is the right thing to do, providing informative or other forms of content should not be restricted based on any kind of disability. Secondly, many countries, such as the United States and Europe, require content to be accessible to at least a certain standard mandated by law. Failing to follow these guidelines can result in legal action. But, making your content accessible shows that you took the time and effort to go through the steps to ensure accessibility resulting in a gain of goodwill from the public.

How?

Tools to ensure accessibility can include things like the use of headings to accommodate those using screen readers or by including alternative text on image. For further visual mediums, like videos or games, the use of subtitles or the inclusion of a color blind picture mode can greatly increasing accessibility to those programs or services. These features are also very useful to people who do not necessarily need them, but find them helpful regardless.