Thanks to the arrival of generative algorithms able to create fake accounts, attributing behaviors to them and providing them with the ability to generate texts on a given topic.
An investigation by Rolling Stone journalist Cheyenne Roundtree based on HBO text message data that has emerged during preparations for a wrongful dismissal lawsuit reveals that the company’s senior management routinely uses a series of fake Twitter accounts to respond to critics of its programming.
The company’s CEO, Casey Bloys, has admitted responsibility, describing it as “a very, very dumb idea” he came up with while scrolling through Twitter, now X, during lockdown, and has apologized. Which is all well and good, but the reality is that these kinds of practices are increasingly common, given how easy it is to manipulate social networks that are eager to show some kind of growth of any kind. To open an account on X, all you have to do is click on the bottom left corner of the smartphone screen, and you get a prompt, a feature that doesn’t make much sense for a company supposedly in pursuit of meaningful, genuine accounts.
The problem, moreover, is that not only are more and more accounts being created in this way, but doing so will be easier and easier thanks to the arrival of generative algorithms able to create fake accounts, attributing behaviors to them and providing them with the ability to generate texts on a given topic. Welcome to the world of astroturfing, named after a well-known brand of artificial grass (“you are more fake than AstroTurf”), the most common way governments and other actors use to generate fake activity, Sway public opinion and to silence voices they don’t like on social networks.
At which point, we might ask ourselves what kind of world are we living in when anyone, whether the CEO of a television network, the campaign manager of a political party or a government trying to destabilize another, can conjure up armies of fake accounts. If we don’t take steps to prevent this, we’ll soon find ourselves with social networks where synthetic personalities outnumber real ones, and a situation where activity will be generated by machines.
HBO’s misdeeds are just another illustration of how tempting it is to create fake content, and the need to create verification systems to check that accounts are associated with a real person, albeit without access their personal data. From there, equipping ourselves with rules about the number of accounts a person should be able to manage and controlling that the activity is relatively easy.
The characteristics of non-genuine activity show that social networks are doing very little or nothing to stop it: establishing that an account is fake is fairly simple, as it should be to routinely delete them.
Meanwhile, we can expect more cases like HBO’s at increasingly sophisticated levels, and with surely more sinister purposes. Some, in fact, have articles about them on Wikipedia for a long time…
—
This post was previously published on Enrique Dans’ blog.
***
You may also like these posts on The Good Men Project:
Join The Good Men Project as a Premium Member today.
All Premium Members get to view The Good Men Project with NO ADS.
A $50 annual membership gives you an all access pass. You can be a part of every call, group, class and community.
A $25 annual membership gives you access to one class, one Social Interest group and our online communities.
A $12 annual membership gives you access to our Friday calls with the publisher, our online community.
Register New Account
Need more info? A complete list of benefits is here.
—
Photo credit: iStock
