2021
Social Media, Influence, and Democracy: Reconcilable Differences?
Did you know that about one in five US adults say they get their news primarily through social media? However, in addition to news, social media platforms have become incredibly efficient tools for spreading propaganda and disinformation credited with interference
Keeping it Real in an Information Deluge
Did you know our brains can only process about 120 Kb per second and can only do so serially? Yet every day we are deluged with 34GB of information. We also spend close to 8 hours every day interacting with
Decision Pitfalls in a Big Data World
Data growth is a direct consequence of advances in technology ranging from the smartphone to the Internet of Things devices. Today, the “datasphere”, or the volume of data in the world – is estimated to be over 60 Zettabytes. We
Machine-Made Decisions: Consequences of Consistency
Automated algorithm-driven decision-making systems are increasingly replacing humans in areas as varied as HR hiring, loan applications, insurance brokerage and even routine medical diagnostics. In some contexts, such as employment, decision making based on arbitrary criteria is legal, and in
The Hackable Home: Smart Devices, Dumb Security
From fitness trackers to connected cars, IoT (“Internet of Things”) devices have made our lives easier and more convenient. Despite their nifty features, many harbor poor design when it comes to security and privacy of the data they collect (and
Cleaning Up after Dirty Disinformation Tricks
“Falsehood flies…and the Truth comes limping after it,” wrote Jonathan Swift the Anglo-Irish writer and satirist in 1710. That was in the 18th century of course. Now in the 21st century, with the advent of the Internet, distribution platforms, and
Paying for it in the Attention Economy
In early 1997 a UC Berkley based Theoretical Physicist wrote article in Wired Magazine, where he called “attention” the currency of the new economy. He foreshadowed its potential consequences: division, disparity of power, deepening inequality, disproportionate advantages for the most
(How) Can we dig ourselves out of a deepfake hole?
Guest: Andrew J. Grotto The term “Deepfake” was first coined by a Reddit user who created a forum of the same name in 2017. The forum was dedicated to the creation and use of deep learning software for digitally swapping
Can advances in technology help liberate us from the grip of disinformation?
The events of the last few years have underlined that we are awash in disinformation, AND that a large swath of society believes that disinformation to be reality. But disinformation doesn’t just include easily refutable assertions, it also includes sophisticated
A disinformation playbook
Like it or not – we are at war: one of information and disinformation and the stakes cannot be higher. How can we better understand and mitigate, or at least anticipate what is next in a disinformation campaign? For example,