Graphika

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Graphika is an American social network analysis company known for tracking online disinformation. [1] [2] It was established in 2013. [3]

Contents

History

Graphika was founded in 2013 by John Kelly, a computational social scientist with a PhD from Columbia University. [3] It is based in New York. [4]

Graphika has identified disinformation campaigns by the Internet Research Agency, a Russian troll farm, targeting voters in the 2016 and 2020 United States presidential elections and the 2022 elections. [5] [6] [7] It has also uncovered Chinese-linked disinformation campaigns, such as a network of fake social media accounts promoting misinformation about COVID-19 vaccines in 2020 [8] and deepfake news anchors promoting pro-China propaganda in 2023. [9]

In 2023, Graphika identified an influence operation targeting voters in the 2024 Taiwanese presidential election. [10] In 2024, it traced the creation of deepfake pornographic images of Taylor Swift back to a 4chan community. [11]

Operation

Graphika says it relies on artificial intelligence to analyze online communities and identify coordinated operations. [12]

Graphika works with companies such as Google, Facebook and Twitter. [1] [3] It has stated that it provides intelligence to the companies it works with, so that they can make their own strategic decisions. [3]

Related Research Articles

Disinformation is misleading content deliberately spread to deceive people, or to secure economic or political gain and which may cause public harm. Disinformation is an orchestrated adversarial activity in which actors employ strategic deceptions and media manipulation tactics to advance political, military, or commercial goals. Disinformation is implemented through attacks that "weaponize multiple rhetorical strategies and forms of knowing—including not only falsehoods but also truths, half-truths, and value judgements—to exploit and amplify culture wars and other identity-driven controversies."

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Misinformation</span> Incorrect or misleading information

Misinformation is incorrect or misleading information. Misinformation and disinformation are not interchangeable terms: Misinformation can exist with or without specific malicious intent whereas disinformation is distinct in that the information is deliberately deceptive and propagated. Misinformation can include inaccurate, incomplete, misleading, or false information as well as selective or half-truths. In January 2024, the World Economic Forum identified misinformation and disinformation, propagated by both internal and external interests, to "widen societal and political divides" as the most severe global risks within the next two years.

State-sponsored Internet propaganda is Internet manipulation and propaganda that is sponsored by a state. States have used the Internet, particularly social media to influence elections, sow distrust in institutions, spread rumors, spread disinformation, typically using bots to create and spread contact. Propaganda is used internally to control populations, and externally to influence other societies.

Internet manipulation is the co-optation of online digital technologies, including algorithms, social bots, and automated scripts, for commercial, social, military, or political purposes. Internet and social media manipulation are the prime vehicles for spreading disinformation due to the importance of digital platforms for media consumption and everyday communication. When employed for political purposes, internet manipulation may be used to steer public opinion, polarise citizens, circulate conspiracy theories, and silence political dissidents. Internet manipulation can also be done for profit, for instance, to harm corporate or political adversaries and improve brand reputation. Internet manipulation is sometimes also used to describe the selective enforcement of Internet censorship or selective violations of net neutrality.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Deepfake</span> Realistic artificially generated media

Deepfakes are images, videos, or audio which are edited or generated using artificial intelligence tools, and which may depict real or non-existent people. They are a type of synthetic media and modern form of a Media prank.

Social media use in politics refers to the use of online social media platforms in political processes and activities. Political processes and activities include all activities that pertain to the governance of a country or area. This includes political organization, global politics, political corruption, political parties, and political values. The media's primary duty is to present us with information and alert us when events occur. This information may affect what we think and the actions we take. The media can also place pressure on the government to act by signaling a need for intervention or showing that citizens want change

Deepfake pornography, or simply fake pornography, is a type of synthetic pornography that is created via altering already-existing photographs or video by applying deepfake technology to the images of the participants. The use of deepfake pornography has sparked controversy because it involves the making and sharing of realistic videos featuring non-consenting individuals, typically female celebrities, and is sometimes used for revenge porn. Efforts are being made to combat these ethical concerns through legislation and technology-based solutions.

Peace Data or PeaceData is a fake news website run by the Internet Research Agency, a Russian outlet connected to the country's government, which publishes in English and Arabic.

Disinformation attacks are strategic deception campaigns involving media manipulation and internet manipulation, to disseminate misleading information, aiming to confuse, paralyze, and polarize an audience. Disinformation can be considered an attack when it occurs as an adversarial narrative campaign that weaponizes multiple rhetorical strategies and forms of knowing—including not only falsehoods but also truths, half-truths, and value-laden judgements—to exploit and amplify identity-driven controversies. Disinformation attacks use media manipulation to target broadcast media like state-sponsored TV channels and radios. Due to the increasing use of internet manipulation on social media, they can be considered a cyber threat. Digital tools such as bots, algorithms, and AI technology, along with human agents including influencers, spread and amplify disinformation to micro-target populations on online platforms like Instagram, Twitter, Google, Facebook, and YouTube.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Renée DiResta</span> Writer and internet researcher

Renée DiResta is a professor, writer and former research manager at Stanford Internet Observatory (SIO). DiResta has written about pseudoscience, conspiracy theories, terrorism, and state-sponsored information warfare. She has also served as an advisor to the U.S. Congress on ongoing efforts to prevent online and social media disinformation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stanford Internet Observatory</span> Misinformation researchers with Stanford University

The Stanford Internet Observatory (SIO) is a multidisciplinary program for the study of abuse in information technologies, with a focus on social media, established in 2019. It is part of the Stanford Cyber Policy Center, a joint initiative of the Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies and Stanford Law School.

The Trusted News Initiative (TNI) is an international alliance of news media, social media and technology corporations which claim to be working to identify and combat purported disinformation about national elections, the COVID-19 pandemic and COVID-19 vaccines. TNI was founded by Jessica Cecil, a leadership figure at the BBC who also serves as the initiative's director.

Foreign rivals of the United States, mainly Russia and China, have attempted to weaken American race relations as a geopolitical strategy. This manipulation is primarily done through misinformation posted on social media, targeting mainly African-Americans and Asian-Americans. Russia's social media campaign was thought to have affected the 2016 U.S. presidential election. The practice can be traced back to propaganda efforts of the Soviet Union's Comintern in the 1920s.

In late January 2024, sexually explicit AI-generated deepfake images of American musician Taylor Swift were proliferated on social media platforms 4chan and X. Several artificial images of Swift of a sexual or violent nature were quickly spread, with one post reported to have been seen over 47 million times before its eventual removal. The images led Microsoft to enhance Microsoft Designer's text-to-image model to prevent future abuse. Moreover, these images prompted responses from anti-sexual assault advocacy groups, US politicians, Swifties, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella, among others, and it has been suggested that Swift's influence could result in new legislation regarding the creation of deepfake pornography.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Artificial intelligence and elections</span> Use and impact of AI on political elections

As artificial intelligence (AI) has become more mainstream, there is growing concern about how this will influence elections. Potential targets of AI include election processes, election offices, election officials and election vendors.

Spamouflage, Dragonbridge, Spamouflage Dragon, Storm 1376, or Taizi Flood is an online propaganda and disinformation operation that has been using a network of social media accounts to make posts in favor of the government of the People's Republic of China and harass dissidents and journalists overseas since 2017. Beginning in the early 2020s, Spamouflage accounts also began making posts about American and Taiwanese politics. It is widely believed that the Chinese government, particularly the Ministry of Public Security, is behind the network. Spamouflage has increasingly used generative artificial intelligence for influence operations. The campaign has largely failed to receive views from real users, although it has attracted some organic engagement using new tactics.

The government of the People's Republic of China interfered in the 2024 United States elections through propaganda and disinformation campaigns, primarily linked to its Spamouflage influence operation. The efforts came amidst larger foreign interference in the 2024 United States elections.

References

  1. 1 2 Melendez, Steven (March 9, 2021). "How Graphika fights misinformation by tracking it across social media". Fast Company . Archived from the original on July 3, 2023. Retrieved February 10, 2024.
  2. ↑ "TIME100 Most Influential Companies 2023: Graphika". Time . 2023-06-21. Archived from the original on 2023-12-09. Retrieved 2024-02-10.
  3. 1 2 3 4 Murphy, Margi (April 24, 2023). "These Online Detectives Have Raised $300 Million to Keep Lies From Triggering the Next Bank Run". Bloomberg News . Archived from the original on 24 April 2023. Retrieved 2024-03-12.
  4. ↑ "China's deepfake anchors spread disinformation on social media, Graphika says". Radio Free Asia . Archived from the original on 2024-01-16. Retrieved 2024-03-12.
  5. ↑ Timberg, Craig; Romm, Tony (2018-12-17). "New report on Russian disinformation, prepared for the Senate, shows the operation's scale and sweep". The Washington Post . ISSN   0190-8286. Archived from the original on 2024-03-10. Retrieved 2024-03-12.
  6. ↑ Wong, Julia Carrie (2019-10-21). "Facebook discloses operations by Russia and Iran to meddle in 2020 election". The Guardian. ISSN   0261-3077. Archived from the original on 2024-01-23. Retrieved 2024-03-12.
  7. ↑ Sabin, Sam (November 4, 2022). "Russian-linked disinformation is targeting far-right voters: Report". Axios . Archived from the original on September 27, 2023. Retrieved March 12, 2024.
  8. ↑ "Chinese Spam Network Aims to Discredit U.S. COVID Vaccine". PBS Frontline . Archived from the original on 2024-01-16. Retrieved 2024-03-12.
  9. ↑ "Deepfake 'news anchors' in pro-China footage: research". France 24 . 2023-02-08. Archived from the original on 2024-03-12. Retrieved 2024-03-12.
  10. ↑ Bond, Shannon (December 13, 2023). "Fake social media accounts are targeting Taiwan's presidential election". NPR . Archived from the original on February 29, 2024. Retrieved March 12, 2024.
  11. ↑ Belanger, Ashley (2024-02-05). "4chan daily challenge sparked deluge of explicit AI Taylor Swift images". Ars Technica . Archived from the original on 2024-02-09. Retrieved 2024-03-12.
  12. ↑ Smalley, Suzanne (2022-10-21). "Is a more collaborative approach the answer to fighting global disinformation?". CyberScoop. Archived from the original on 2023-12-07. Retrieved 2024-03-12.
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