Social media created this mess, and social media will have to fix it
The internet revolutionized the way we search for information, but it also opened a world of new possibilities for mischief-makers. Disinformation is everywhere you look, and often just a few clicks away. The industry has been practically begging for regulations of some kind, and now the European Union (EU) is updating its code of practice to push companies like Google, Facebook, and Twitter to take measures to counter lies on their platforms.
Disinformation has long gone beyond shady blog posts, or rumors bouncing between unverified accounts on social media. Thanks to the rise of AI and machine learning, image and video forgery are now a very real issue, with deep fakes (false, albeit realistic representations of actual people) oftentimes used for negative and detrimental purposes.
The EU is clearly not having any of this and is in the process of updating its code of practice in one of many steps to crack down on fake news, as reported by Reuters based on unpublished documents it was able to access. According to the account, the code originally introduced in 2018 will soon explicitly target manipulative behavior through deep fakes and false accounts. Interestingly, the code also has a role to play in Russia’s ongoing invasion of Ukraine and could help address disinformation from Russia.
Once in effect, companies that fail to fulfill their new obligations will face fines of up to 6% of their global business. Fortunately for them, the companies in question will have six months to implement measures to combat disinformation on their platforms. Advertising is also a major focus here, and the companies involved will be required to tackle disinformation in adverts and improve transparency, especially for political promotions.
The report notes that the code is linked to the Digital Services Act (DSA), a set of tough new EU rules agreed upon by the Union earlier this year. And this makes sense, considering that some aspects of the code, such as fines, are based on DSA rules.
