Facebook Enables 'Fake News'

Another former Facebook executive has spoken out against the company’s current business practices, arguing that they directly enable electoral interference.

Dipayan Ghosh, (pictured) once a privacy and public policy advisor for the social network, argues now that disinformation of the sort used to interfere in the US election and the EU referendum is strongly linked to the nature of Facebook as an advertising platform.

“Political disinformation succeeds because it follows the structural logic, benefits from the products and perfects the strategies of the broader digital advertising market,” Ghosh and his co-author Ben Scott wrote in a report, Digital Deceit, published by the New America foundation.

Ghosh left Facebook in 2017, shortly after the US general election raised troubling questions for him about the relationship between the company and disinformation. In the new report, he and Scott argue that attempts to put a lid on the practice with tweaks to the platform are doomed to failure while the basic business model of a social network is advertising-driven, algorithmically-run and attention-focused.

“The central problem of disinformation corrupting American political culture is not Russian spies or a particular social media platform,” they write. “The central problem is that the entire industry is built to leverage sophisticated technology to aggregate user attention and sell advertising. 
“There is an alignment of interests between advertisers and the platforms. And disinformation operators are typically indistinguishable from any other advertiser. Any viable policy solutions must start here.”

The report makes a number of recommendations, including an updated set of regulations designed to support privacy, particularly when it comes to politically-motivated demographic profiling. But perhaps the most promising for many social network users is a simpler one: switching news feeds back to simple chronological listing.

Despite the recommendations, Ghosh doesn’t go as far as other outspoken former Facebookers, such as Sean Parker and Chamath Palihapitiya, in arguing that social networking is an overall negative for society.

“My feeling about the industry and about social media is that it’s a connector,” he told tech news site the Verge. “It brings access to people, not just access to social media, but access to the Internet, to people in all corners of the world. I think on the whole it is a positive. And these are fundamental flaws that just need to be addressed.”

Guardian

You Might Also Read: 

Facebook & Google Are ‘A Menace to Society’:

You Probably Don’t Know All the Ways Facebook Tracks You:

 

« Chinese Healthcare Technology Moves Ahead
UK Blames Russia For NotPetya Cyberattack »

CyberSecurity Jobsite
Check Point

Directory of Suppliers

Practice Labs

Practice Labs

Practice Labs is an IT competency hub, where live-lab environments give access to real equipment for hands-on practice of essential cybersecurity skills.

ZenGRC

ZenGRC

ZenGRC (formerly Reciprocity) is a leader in the GRC SaaS landscape, offering robust and intuitive products designed to make compliance straightforward and efficient.

Alvacomm

Alvacomm

Alvacomm offers holistic VIP cybersecurity services, providing comprehensive protection against cyber threats. Our solutions include risk assessment, threat detection, incident response.

Syxsense

Syxsense

Syxsense brings together endpoint management and security for greater efficiency and collaboration between IT management and security teams.

LockLizard

LockLizard

Locklizard provides PDF DRM software that protects PDF documents from unauthorized access and misuse. Share and sell documents securely - prevent document leakage, sharing and piracy.

iTrinegy

iTrinegy

iTrinegy is a world leader in Application Risk Management offering solutions to mitigate all networked application deployment risks

EG-CERT

EG-CERT

EG-CERT is the national Computer Emergency Response Team for Egypt.

TechCERT

TechCERT

TechCERT is Sri Lanka’s first and largest Computer Emergency Readiness Team (CERT).

Padlock

Padlock

Padlock is a trusted platform with an intimate knowledge of the cybersecurity industry that connects businesses with freelance professionals

Trusted Objects

Trusted Objects

Trusted Object's mission is to provide state of the art security solutions and services enabling a strong root of trust for the IoT ecosystem.

Estio Training

Estio Training

Estio Training is a specialist digital and IT apprenticeships provider, dedicated to introducing new skills and developing existing talent in businesses across the UK.

Verificient Technologies

Verificient Technologies

Verificient Technologies specializes in biometrics, computer vision, and machine learning to deliver world-class solutions in continuous identity verification and remote monitoring.

Finnish Security & Intelligence Service (SUPO)

Finnish Security & Intelligence Service (SUPO)

The Finnish Security and Intelligence Service is a government agency tasked with combating serious threats to national security in Finland.

CrowdSec

CrowdSec

CrowdSec is an open-source & participative IPS able to analyze visitor behavior by parsing logs & provide an adapted response to all kinds of attacks.

Cyberi

Cyberi

Cyberi provide specialist technical consultancy and cyber advisory services, from penetration testing and assurance to incident management and response, and technical security research.

GreenPages Technology Solutions

GreenPages Technology Solutions

GreenPages provide expert strategic guidance and proven cloud-era solutions for our clients. Every day we help organizations leverage the cloud securely with less risk and cost.

EPIQ Infotech

EPIQ Infotech

EPIQ Infotech is a trusted consulting and implementation partner for Oracle JD Edwards and Amazon Web Services (AWS).

Logiq Consulting

Logiq Consulting

Logiq Consulting provide a full range of Cyber Security, Information Assurance and System Engineering services.

HaystackID

HaystackID

HaystackID provides industry-leading computer forensics, eDiscovery, and attorney document review experts to help with complex, data-intensive investigations and litigation.

EmberOT

EmberOT

EmberOT is at the forefront of operational technology (OT) security, offering cutting-edge solutions designed to protect critical infrastructure within energy, utilities, and manufacturing sectors.

Forensic IT

Forensic IT

Forensic IT is a specialised cyber security firm with expertise in Digital Forensics and Incident Response (DFIR).