University of Kwazulu-Natal

Unmasking Deception Strategies To Combat Ai Driven Disinformation

Bonisiwe Shabane
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unmasking deception strategies to combat ai driven disinformation

García-Faroldi, L.; Teruel, L.; Blanco, S. Unmasking AI’s Role in the Age of Disinformation: Friend or Foe? Journal. Media 2025, 6, 19. https://doi.org/10.3390/journalmedia6010019 García-Faroldi L, Teruel L, Blanco S.

Unmasking AI’s Role in the Age of Disinformation: Friend or Foe? Journalism and Media. 2025; 6(1):19. https://doi.org/10.3390/journalmedia6010019 García-Faroldi, Livia, Laura Teruel, and Sonia Blanco. 2025.

"Unmasking AI’s Role in the Age of Disinformation: Friend or Foe?" Journalism and Media 6, no. 1: 19. https://doi.org/10.3390/journalmedia6010019 García-Faroldi, L., Teruel, L., & Blanco, S. (2025). Unmasking AI’s Role in the Age of Disinformation: Friend or Foe?

Journalism and Media, 6(1), 19. https://doi.org/10.3390/journalmedia6010019 Our research integrity and auditing teams lead the rigorous process that protects the quality of the scientific record The Rise of AI-Generated Fake News: A Threat to Democratic Discourse The advent of artificial intelligence, particularly Large Language Models (LLMs), has revolutionized the creation and dissemination of information. While offering immense potential benefits, this technological advancement has also amplified the spread of misinformation, posing a significant threat to democratic processes, especially during election cycles.

With the 2024 elections approaching in the United States and other major democracies, concerns about the proliferation of AI-generated fake news have reached a fever pitch. The ability of these advanced algorithms to generate human-quality text, coupled with tools like Sora that can produce realistic video footage, makes distinguishing genuine news from fabricated content increasingly difficult. The Mechanics of AI-Driven Disinformation As Walid Saad, an engineering and machine learning expert at Virginia Tech explains, the creation of fake news websites predates the AI revolution. However, AI, particularly LLMs, has drastically simplified the process of generating seemingly credible articles and stories by automating the sifting through vast datasets and crafting convincing narratives. This AI-assisted refinement of misinformation makes fake news sites more insidious and persuasive.

The continuous operation of these websites is fueled by the engagement they receive. As long as misinformation is shared widely on social media platforms, the individuals behind these operations will continue their deceptive practices. Combating AI-Powered Fake News: A Multifaceted Approach Despite being used to create deepfakes, AI can also be used to combat misinformation and disinformation. Image: Gilles Lambert/Unsplash The proliferation of artificial intelligence (AI) in the digital age has ushered in both remarkable innovations and unique challenges, particularly in the realm of information integrity.

AI technologies, with their capability to generate convincing fake texts, images, audio and videos (often referred to as 'deepfakes'), present significant difficulties in distinguishing authentic content from synthetic creations. This capability lets wrongdoers automate and expand disinformation campaigns, greatly increasing their reach and impact. However, AI is not a villain in this story. It also plays a crucial role in combating disinformation and misinformation. Advanced AI-driven systems can analyse patterns, language use and context to aid in content moderation, fact-checking and the detection of false information. Understanding the nuances between misinformation (unintentional spread of falsehoods) and disinformation (deliberate spread) – as is crucial for effective countermeasures – could also be facilitated by AI analysis of content.

In the rapidly evolving digital age, the proliferation of disinformation and misinformation poses significant challenges to societal trust and information integrity. Recognizing the urgency of addressing this issue, this systematic review endeavors to explore the role of artificial intelligence (AI) in combating the spread of false information. This study aims to provide a comprehensive analysis of how AI technologies have been utilized from 2014 to 2024 to detect, analyze, and mitigate the impact of misinformation across various platforms. This research utilized an exhaustive search across prominent databases such as ProQuest, IEEE Explore, Web of Science, and Scopus. Articles published within the specified timeframe were meticulously screened, resulting in the identification of 8103 studies. Through elimination of duplicates and screening based on title, abstract, and full-text review, we meticulously distilled this vast pool to 76 studies that met the study’s eligibility criteria.

Key findings from the review emphasize the advancements and challenges in AI applications for combating misinformation. These findings highlight AI’s capacity to enhance information verification through sophisticated algorithms and natural language processing. They further emphasize the integration of human oversight and continual algorithm refinement emerges as pivotal in augmenting AI’s effectiveness in discerning and countering misinformation. By fostering collaboration across sectors and leveraging the insights gleaned from this study, researchers can propel the development of ethical and effective AI solutions. This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access. Price excludes VAT (USA) Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

The data presented in this study are available on request from the corresponding author. Baptista JP, Gradim A (2022) A working definition of fake news. Encyclopedia 2(1):66

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Journalism and Media, 6(1), 19. https://doi.org/10.3390/journalmedia6010019 Our research integrity and auditing teams lead the rigorous process that protects the quality of the scientific record The Rise of AI-Generated Fake News: A Threat to Democratic Discourse The advent of artificial intelligence, particularly Large Language Models (LLMs), has revolutionized the creation and dissemination of i...

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