“You are entitled to your own opinions, but you are not entitled to your own facts”
– Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan
Disinformation is a form of social engineering that aims to play on emotions, and to deceive, mislead and divide people. The goals of malicious actors may be varied, and include creating chaos and doubt as a distraction, damaging or inflating the reputations of individuals, organizations or nations for ideological, personal or financial reasons, or undermining election results, which may be done by a host of different actors, including nation states, for a variety of reasons.
Disinformation or fake news is commonly spread on social media platforms, where message amplification by bots can provide misleading metrics and manipulated prominence in the feed. Social media platforms have become popular ways to consume information, but keep in mind that anyone can post anything on social media. Although official media outlets can have biases and commit errors, social media platforms do not conform to the strict standards of official media outlets. Protect yourself from being influenced by disinformation by applying a healthy dose of critical thinking to what you see and read, remembering that it may not be factual or from a trusted source. Fact check before you share or respond, by verifying the source, author, quotes and facts presented.
You can verify facts by seeking out other points of view or by using a third-party fact checker, such as factcheck.org, ProPublica or snopes.com. Some additional things to evaluate include:
- Source website address: Examine the source website address. Is it correct or are there slight changes/variations which indicate it’s from another source?
- If you’re unfamiliar with the source, the ICANN data registration lookup tool, https://lookup.icann.org/, provides the ability to lookup registration data for a domain.
- The “About Us” page of a site is a recommended place to check for how the site labels itself.
- Author: Is there an author/contributor? Do they appear to be credible and do they have an online presence? Facebook and Twitter now include a check mark in a blue circle for verified individuals/organizations.
- Headline: Does the headline or tagline relate to the body of the article or was it created just to capture your attention?
- Old News: Is the information presented old information that is just being recycled with a new headline?
Fact Check: Seek to verify sources and quotes and the context in which quotes are used. Often the absence of quotes is telling. - Comments: Check the comments. Is anyone questioning the accuracy of the information presented? Is there measured commentary that reflects diverse viewpoints?
- Sponsored Content: You may see areas on your screen laden with catchy taglines or images. Look for a snippet that says “Advertisement” or “Paid Sponsor”. While these are generally not disinformation, they’re ads that are seeking to sell you something. Please note however, that clicking on these elements is not advisable as you may trigger malware installation or be redirected to a malicious site.
- Deepfakes: This term encompasses manipulated videos, images and audio files as well as photos presented out of context. Deepfakes remind us that what you see and hear on social media is not necessarily true and should be approached with a spirit of inquiry.
- With respect to image alteration, look for their source information and evaluate whether they appear to be altered. Signs of image alteration are always more apparent on larger screens and include:
- Uneven lighting or skin tone
- Image synchronization issues
- Blurred lines, and fuzzy hairlines
- With respect to image alteration, look for their source information and evaluate whether they appear to be altered. Signs of image alteration are always more apparent on larger screens and include:
Finally, in terms of handling disinformation that you encounter, it is recommended that you hide or ignore it, rather than respond, share or forward it, and block any users in your feed who share disinformation. The following guide from Verizon, A Guide to Misinformation: How to Spot and Combat Fake News contains (at the end of the page) information on how to report abusive or harmful information to Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat & Twitter.
Additional Resources:
- Forbes, How Students Can Spot Fake News on Social Media
- Freedom Forum Institute, The Quick Guide to Spotting Fake News