In recent years, social media apps like WhatsApp and Telegram they have become tools increasingly used for political propagandaaccording to a recent report from New York University. The experts surveyed 4,500 messaging app users in nine countries and interviewed political strategists in 17 nations, finding that 62% of users received political content through these platforms.
Surprisingly, 55% of this information comes from unknown people, revealing the open and disseminated network nature of communications on these apps. The lack of traditional content moderation mechanisms makes WhatsApp and Telegram particularly vulnerable to misinformation.
The monetized features of these social media sites allow bad actors to amplify misleading messages. For example, the WhatsApp Business Platform offers tools such as “green sign” verification and automatic messages that allow political workers to reach large audiences. Although WhatsApp policies state that political parties cannot use the platform, users find ways to circumvent such restrictions. Similarly, on Viber, political consultants can obtain verified accounts through “partners” or vendors, thus launching social campaigns to attract unauthorized subscriptions.
Disinformation tactics are often based on the involvement of pre-existing groups, taking advantage of interactions between members to spread political messages. Techniques such as “sock puppets” (false profiles) are particularly problematic in messaging contexts, as these platforms offer greater obscurity than to social media traditional. Political workers can also use cross-posting, working their way through rounds of messages that cross various platforms, thus creating “feedback loops” in which the same information bounces between different sources.
The report’s suggestion to avoid the problem
To address these issues, The report suggests a series of recommendations for messaging companies, including limits on account creation and tighter controls for company information. Furthermore, it calls on legislators to include encrypted messaging platforms in existing regulations, without compromising user security.
Recognizing that the value of encrypted messaging to human rights defenders outweighs the risk of disinformation, the report calls for greater transparency on platforms’ policies towards disinformation, so that they can become safer environments for open and honest communication.
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