Social media is the biggest channel for spreading fake news

With most of the tools being free to use and a large number of users, social media is the best channel to disseminate fake news.

According to the latest report by security firm Trend Micro, it only takes about US$55,000 (equivalent to S$76,400) to entice social media users to lose trust and have a negative view of online articles or information, and US$200,000 to incite protests and protests on the streets.

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The Japanese security firm's report The Fake News Machine: How Propagandists Abuse the Internet and Manipulate the Public details the planning, strategy and execution of the widespread fake news sharing scam.

In its report, Trend Micro identifies three essential elements for creating fake news: the tools and services the target uses, the decision on which channels to spread the message, and the use of the Internet's latest media.

“Of course, with today’s tools and services, social media is considered the most powerful platform for spreading propaganda. Social media is one of the most potential factors in spreading fake news. Because today users spend more time on social media instead of surfing websites to get the latest information,” said the representative of the reporting team.

The people behind fake news often want to make money through advertising, smearing business rivals or political causes. In this way, the parties will badmouth the competitors, or businesses will sell more products and make more profit with their business operations.

“Fake news campaigns are not always carried out independently. Sometimes they are large, systematic, and well-organized plans, which can be said to be extremely methodical,” said a representative of Rend Micro./.

According to VOV