Fake news is Watch Sexy Tutoring Class Onlinea very real problem, one that can sway elections and have monumental effects on society. Now, a new cybersecurity research report claims that producing a fake news campaign is not only incredibly cheap — it's also super easy to execute.
A new report from the cybersecurity firm Trend Micro takes a closer look at the cost of running misinformation campaigns hosted by various "content marketers" that offer services in Russian, Chinese, Middle Eastern, and English.
SEE ALSO: Donald Trump's very own staff member handed him fake news. And Trump believed it.These so-called content marketers offer a wide variety of services for running a fake news campaign including things like creating fake social media profiles (about $2,600), writing fake news stories ($30), and even making a video appear in YouTube's main page for a couple of minutes ($620).
There are also more malicious services offered including sparking social unrest, discrediting journalists, and putting constant pressure on a political party or organization. If all these real world outcomes sounds too crazy to be true, consider recent events like the Minnesota sit-in over a racial slur or the Comet Pizza shooting, which were both inspired by fake news stories.
Running these fake news campaigns are surprisingly cheap to execute, according to the report. The cost of discrediting a journalist, for example, is priced at only $50,000 and involves creating a fake news story to contradict the target's reporting, then having the article promoted through things like likes, retweets, upvotes, and comments. It also involves having bots target the journalist's Twitter account and inundating them with negative comments.
SEE ALSO: Hillary Clinton says Facebook must 'prevent fake news from creating a new reality'Influencing an election is slightly more expensive, but still surprisingly cheap considering what's a stake. "A 12-month campaign with a budget of $400,000 should be able to at least attract a multitude of people whose perception and belief are aligned with the campaign’s preferred agenda," says the report. "The deciding factor for this campaign’s success, however, is the timing, or how quickly fake content can be spread before the actual decision is made."
Of course, the giants of Silicon Valley like Google and Facebook are committed to fighting fake news in their own ways. Both companies have been testing tools to downgrade or at least flag false news reports. Unfortunately, it's still unclear whether these new tools can effectively thwart campaigns from click farms like the one recently featured in a Motherboardreport. These businesses are actually quite sophisticated, and it's safe to assume that when the tech giants change their methodology for sorting through fake news, the content farms that execute these campaigns will adapt in lockstep.
Topics Cybersecurity
Previous:A Rich Fable
Next:Beyond Strategy
SpaceX's most recent rocket landing looks so sci6 easy ways to be more sustainable (that you still refuse to do)“The Dead Silence of Goods”: Annie Ernaux and the Superstore by Adrienne RaphelFor Black History Month, TikTok honors creators and announces new grant partnershipSpaceX's most recent rocket landing looks so sciNYT's The Mini crossword answers for January 30iPad Air, iPad Pro: The rumored release date window for the ‘biggest revamp ever’Nancy Lemann Recommends The Palace Papers and Loyola’s Spiritual Exercises by Nancy LemannThe Review’s Review: Emma Bovary at the Opera by Ann ManovApple's iOS 18 will be absolutely huge, report claims6 scientists are living like they're on Mars for the next 8 monthsSpaceX's most recent rocket landing looks so sciI Could Not Believe It: The 1979 Teenage Diaries of Sean DeLear by Sean DeLear and Brontez PurnellWill Taylor Swift attend the Super Bowl? What we know.Scientists are catching sea turtles 'rodeo style' for an important reasonI Could Not Believe It: The 1979 Teenage Diaries of Sean DeLear by Sean DeLear and Brontez PurnellAt William Faulkner’s House by Benjamin NugentBest noiseOur Cover Star, London: An Interview with Emilie Louise Gossiaux by Sophie HaigneyAt Chloë’s Closet Sale by Sophie Kemp Mike Pence's neighbors are calling him out with rainbow flags Every Facebook insider who has turned against the company Justin Bieber covers Taylor Swift again and could it spell T TikTok owner ByteDance reportedly plans to launch Spotify rival Congresspeople call Trump's transparency bluff in amazing letters Mark Zuckerberg reportedly made a racist online profile to smear rival Meet your new hero, an ascot Fill out this job application form to be considered for Trump's cabinet Tesla releases DIY guides for Model 3 maintenance Facebook's 'GlobalCoin' cryptocurrency is reportedly coming in 2020 6 best Oculus Quest games 'Game of Thrones' finale defended by 'Seinfeld' star Jason Alexander 'John Wick 3' fight scenes, ranked by animal involvement 'Black Mirror' Season 5 drops creepy episode trailers and tidbits: Watch What's coming to Amazon Prime Video in June 2019 The Lonely Island's surprise Netflix drop is hilarious for no reason 'Team Sonic Racing' lacks everything that makes kart racing good 'A Plague Tale: Innocence' is like 'Dishonored', if you squint: Review Dudes Snapchat baby penguin they found wandering through city drain Two Teslas race, one above ground, one underground. Guess the winner.
2.6144s , 8222.984375 kb
Copyright © 2025 Powered by 【Watch Sexy Tutoring Class Online】,Charm Information Network