Weaponized Misinformation A.K.A. #FakeNews

Abstract

Misinformation in the form of “fake news” can potentially be weaponized by malicious actors to undermine Canada’s national security and government infrastructure. Developing a comprehensive database to track and understand potential threat actors and their use of fake news can potentially provide actionable intel, thereby exposing and publicly challenging fake news items. Fake news has been used to negatively influence the reputation of government officials and to incite violence between ethnic groups. Fake news utilizes confirmation bias (the tendency to interpret new evidence as confirmation of one's existing beliefs or theories) through disseminating meticulously crafted messages to targeted audiences, who are selected based on their online activities.