Fake news sites surge to 713 in February – Report

The number of fake artificial intelligence news platforms surged to 713 as of February 22, 2023, according to a report.

NewsGuard, a popular tool to counter misinformation, disclosed its latest data title, ‘Tracking AI-enabled Misinformation’.

The report said the increased number of fake AI news platforms had led to an increase in the spread of fake news worldwide.

According to data from NewssGuard, AI-generated sites making false or unverified claims rose from just under 50 in May to around 600 in December 2023.

The report blamed the rush for Ad revenue for the surge in fake news sites.

“To date, NewsGuard’s team has identified 713 Unreliable AI-generated news and information websites labelled “UAINS,” spanning 15 languages: Arabic, Chinese, Czech, Dutch, English, French, German, Indonesian, Italian, Korean, Portuguese, Spanish, Tagalog, Thai, and Turkish.

“These websites typically have generic names, such as iBusiness Day, Ireland Top News, and Daily Time Update, which appear to a consumer to be established news sites”, it stated.

DAILY POST recalls that the Chief of Staff to the President, Femi Gbajabiamila, earlier in February, called for the regulation of social media in Nigeria and the need for accurate information in policy formulation and national development.