Google steps up efforts to protect US election from disinformation
Google, like Facebook, has stepped up measures to safeguard the November US election from manipulation and interference.
The move comes amid a coordinated effort by Facebook and other online platforms to curb the spread of disinformation and thwart efforts to control voters.
Google announced new features because of its search engine to supply detailed information about how precisely to join up and vote, directing users to local election administrators.
Google-owned YouTube will need down content targeted at manipulation, including “videos which contain hacked information about a political candidate distributed to the intent to interfere within an election,” according to a statement.
YouTube will also remove videos promoting efforts to hinder the voting process such as for example telling viewers to create long voting lines.
The announcements come a day after an industry group that includes Google, Microsoft, Reddit, Pinterest and Twitter met with federal agencies like the FBI’s foreign influence task force to step up coordination on election interference.
A joint industry statement said the tech platforms, like the Wikimedia Foundation, which operates Wikipedia, will be searching for disinformation.
“Getting accurate information to voters is among the finest vaccines against disinformation campaigns,” Facebook head of security policy Nathaniel Gleicher said on a briefing call with reporters.
Facebook has set a goal of helping four million people register to vote in america.
A voter information hub, which Facebook announced on Thursday, will be prominently positioned at Facebook and Instagram and “will serve as a one-stop-shop to provide people in america the various tools and information they have to make their voices heard at the ballot box,” it said.
‘Hack-and-Leak’
Expected attacks include “hack-and-leak” tactics such as those used against Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton in 2016, Facebook said.
The tactic typically involves state-sponsored actors giving hacked information to traditional media, then exploiting social media platforms to spread the stories, according to Gleicher.
“We know it is an efficient technique,” Gleicher said.
Facebook said the voter hub would evolve with the election season, from focusing on registration and poll-worker volunteering matters to how exactly to vote in the pandemic and tallying of ballots.
Facebook and Instagram users may use the tool to check on if they're registered to vote and how exactly to do so if they are not.
Tally turbulence
Facebook is expecting malicious actors to try to exploit uncertainly about the election or promote violence while votes are being counted, which is expected to take longer than usual as a result of pandemic prompting more persons to vote by mail.
The social network has created “red teams” and conducted internal exercises to prepare, according to Gleicher.
US President Donald Trump has made unsubstantiated claims about the reliability of voting by mail, an activity he taken good thing about himself.
Facebook’s latest moves come amid concerns over campaigns by governments aimed at influencing elections and public sentiment in other countries through media outlets that disguise their true origins.
State-led influence campaigns were prominent on social media during the 2016 US election and also have been seen around the world.
“Now Facebook appears to acknowledge the energy it holds, plus they are taking actions to combat misinformation and bolster voter engagement,” said University of Hartford School of Communication Assistant Professor Adam Chiara.
“Maybe some steps they are taking work and others are mistakes, but I would rather have the platform try to be considered a positive force than maintain denial of the role it plays in our democracy.”
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