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How do we find the truth among online mis- and disinformation?

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Online misinformation and disinformation through inauthentic social media profiles and deep fake content have become a significant challenge in recent years. For corporations, this digital deception can result in reputational damage through inauthentic smear campaigns. It can also lead to financial losses through misguided investment advice, with fraudulent social media posts being investigated by the SEC as a driving force in the 2021 GameStop saga.

Disinformation is intentionally false information meant to deceive, while misinformation is false information shared without the intent to mislead. Misinformation can take the form of erroneous emails shared by someone who believes the information to be real, or unverifiable rumours on social media and forums. Examples of disinformation include scandalous stories shared on unauthentic news websites, or manipulated videos and images, such as deep fakes.

Neon Century’s analysts use a rigorous cross-corroboration method to fight misinformation and disinformation. Mastering techniques such as identifying the origin of a website or an image, using deep fake detection software, and analysing metadata, help us stay ahead of online threats to our clients.

Furthermore, our analysts stay updated on the latest OSINT advancements, especially as social media platforms such as X and Facebook evolve rapidly. This ensures they adapt to the ever-changing digital landscape. Rigorous research is applied to finding the latest browser extensions and social media analysis tools, which can help clients proactively take charge against disinformation campaigns online.

Case study: Neon untangles a bot network targeting a private equity firm

We had to employ anti-mis/disinformation techniques in a recent investigation, when our private equity client became the target of a defamation campaign on X, sparking concern from their portfolio companies. They wanted us to identify the source of malicious rumours being spread about the firm online.

We first used advanced searches to compile a list of accounts that had recently criticised our client. We then identified the inauthentic users by analysing the accounts’ activity, noting that several accounts had posted over 200 tweets mentioning our client in just one day, including during unsociable hours. We then used social listening software to map the entities, noticing that a single account was connected to all of the bots. It was also the first account to tweet about the alleged rumours.

Analysis of archived versions of deleted content from the account eventually led us back to an employee at one of our client’s main competitors. Our intelligence was shared with our client’s lawyers, enabling them to take legal action and have the content removed from X.

At Neon, we have seen firsthand how fake social media accounts, bot networks, and deep fake content have made it easier for deceptive practices to harm our clients’ finances and reputations. Our multi-step approach includes rigorous cross-verification, social media analysis, media monitoring, and network analysis.

By Lucy Hunter

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