Faith-Based Daily Awareness Post 12 July 2024

These updates are shared to help raise the situational awareness of Faith-Based organizations to best defend against and mitigate the impacts from all-hazards threats including physical security, cybersecurity, and natural disasters.

TikTok Content Farms Use AI Voiceovers to Mass-Produce Political Misinformation

NewsGuard reports:

“In September 2023, NewsGuard identified what appeared to be the first of its kind: a network of 17 TikTok accounts using AI text-to-speech software to create videos advancing conspiracy theories about celebrities, amassing hundreds of millions of views. Now, the phenomenon appears to be growing and shifting its focus to politics. 

NewsGuard has identified 41 TikTok accounts in English and French using AI-generated narration to spread political misinformation at scale. Call it the rise of the TikTok AI content farm. (Content farms are entities that generate large volumes of low-quality content, typically to attract views and ad revenue.)

…

False, misleading, or baseless narratives the accounts have advanced include:

• • That former President Donald Trump was arrested and “cuffed” after attacking “Maine’s Secretary of State at her residence.” Also, that Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene is pregnant with former President Donald Trump’s child.
  • That NATO deployed troops in Ukraine (as of July 2024, there is no evidence that NATO has sent combat troops to the country).
  • That France could leave the EU “in the coming weeks.” (None of France’s main political parties, including the eurosceptic far-right National Rally, advocates for a so-called “Frexit.”)
  • That the U.S. was behind the March 2024 attack on the Crocus City Hall terrorist attack in Moscow (Islamic State militants, not the U.S., orchestrated and carried out the attack).”

Related article:

• AI-Driven Scam Ads: Deepfake Tech Used to Peddle Bogus Health Products
• Musk’s Voice, Likeness Used in Deepfake Scam Targeting the Olympics

Analyst Comments:

Faith-Based Organization (FBO) members while in their FBO position and private life should consider being extra alert for AI generated deep fakes on robocalls, scamming calls and videocalls, social media, and streaming sites. AI can be used to carry out scams and promote political misinformation, disinformation, and malinformation (MDM).

FB-ISAO’s 14 May 2024 Daily Awareness Post highlighted the SIFT strategy for spotting misinformation. The four steps for spotting misinformation are:

• S is for… Stop
• I is for… Investigate the source
• F is for… Find better coverage
• T is for… Trace the claim to its original context

Additionally, AI can be used by scammers to mimic family, friends, or coworkers. Scammers are using AI-generated voice clones, the FTC warns. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) issued a consumer alert which recommends:

• Resist the pressure to react and send money immediately. Hang up — or tell the person you’ll call them right back. If you don’t feel comfortable hanging up, try asking a question only the real person would know the answer to, like “What kind of dog do you have?” or “Where did you spend Thanksgiving last year?”

• Use a phone number you know is right to call or message the family member or friend who (supposedly) contacted you. Ask them if they’re really in trouble.
• Call someone else in your family or circle of friends, even if the caller said to keep it a secret — or sounds like a loved one. Do that especially if you can’t reach the friend or family member who’s supposed to be in trouble. A trusted person can help you figure out whether the story is true.

Additionally, it might be a good Idea for families to have a code word, which only the family knows, to confirm the identity of callers that claim to be a family member.