In a reminiscent scene of a child complaining to their parents about a friend or schoolmate’s behavior, both Meta and Google have recently voiced their concerns over China’s online conduct. Meta, the owner of the popular social media network, released its Quarterly Adversarial Threat Report, explicitly accusing the Xi Jinping-led nation of engaging in deceptive online strategies. These tactics include the dissemination of misinformation through fake accounts and the circulation of false reports regarding the economic and political landscape of Western nations.
Google, in a parallel move, issued a threat intelligence report revealing that approximately 7,000 hackers allegedly affiliated with Chinese intelligence were employing fake names and profile pictures of Americans to share trending content across various platforms. Notably, much of the content involved in these activities is either directly copied or artfully rephrased, circulating predominantly on platforms like Twitter (referred to as “X”). To add an extra layer of authenticity, hackers reportedly pay genuine Facebook users to re-share the content once it begins trending.
The thematic focus of these dubious posts spans a wide range, encompassing political matters, gaming, history, cyber-attacks, entertainment, fashion, and models.
Security analysts from Meta assert that the creators of such content exhibit a habit of frequently changing their locations, often choosing places like India. This geographical maneuvering is seen as an attempt to tarnish the image of the targeted nation on the international stage.
Both tech giants are combating this issue by leveraging artificial intelligence to identify and eliminate such deceptive accounts. In the year 2022 alone, they collectively succeeded in removing over 7 million accounts from their respective platforms.
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