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posted by martyb on Friday September 09 2016, @02:31PM   Printer-friendly
from the astroturfers-gets-a-trim dept.

An algorithm developed at Carnegie Mellon University makes it easier to determine if someone has faked an Amazon or Yelp review or if a politician with a suspiciously large number of Twitter followers might have bought and paid for that popularity.

The method, called FRAUDAR, marks the latest escalation in the cat-and-mouse game played by online fraudsters and the social media platforms that try to out them. In particular, the new algorithm makes it possible to see through camouflage that fraudsters use to make themselves look legitimate, said Christos Faloutsos, professor of machine learning and computer science.

In real-world experiments using Twitter data for 41.7 million users and 1.47 billion followers, FRAUDAR fingered more than 4,000 accounts not previously identified as fraudulent, including many that used known follower-buying services such as TweepMe and TweeterGetter.

Bad news for the nascent astroturfing industry.


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  • (Score: 2, Offtopic) by Thexalon on Friday September 09 2016, @03:51PM

    by Thexalon (636) on Friday September 09 2016, @03:51PM (#399659)

    Relatively small sample size probably has something to do with it.

    I know personally at least a dozen vocal Clinton supporters who I don't have reason to believe were bought off, so I know they exist. They range from those who believe her to be some kind of feminist icon (she isn't one), or think corruption is just part of the game and everyone does it so it's basically OK.

    The most interesting poll numbers to me this cycle are the favorability-unfavorability [gallup.com] numbers. Basically, the Republicans managed to nominate the most hated major party candidate since Gallup started keeping track in 1956. The Democrats, for their part, managed to nominate the most hated candidate in the history of their party, so she might in fact manage to lose to the other guy. At least 1 out of 5 Americans hate both of them, and 1 out of 10 are saying they'll vote for a third-party candidate.

    I definitely don't blame people who are thinking of sitting this one out. I'm in the "hold-my-nose-and-vote-Clinton" camp, because I believe that she and her people will at least have some sort of clue what they're doing in the Oval Office.

    --
    The only thing that stops a bad guy with a compiler is a good guy with a compiler.
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  • (Score: 1, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Friday September 09 2016, @04:02PM

    by Anonymous Coward on Friday September 09 2016, @04:02PM (#399662)

    A single vote has a statistically insignificant chance of changing the result of the presidential election.

    Why don't you just vote for who you think is the best? You won't be responsible for the outcome of the election either way.

    • (Score: 3, Informative) by requerdanos on Friday September 09 2016, @04:19PM

      by requerdanos (5997) Subscriber Badge on Friday September 09 2016, @04:19PM (#399670) Journal

      A single vote has a statistically insignificant chance of changing the [election] result.... Why don't you just vote for who you think is the best?

      If most people did this, instead of insisting to themselves and others the propaganda position that there are "only two choices", the two-parties-two-choices stranglehold would be broken within a couple cycles.

    • (Score: 2) by maxwell demon on Friday September 09 2016, @05:01PM

      by maxwell demon (1608) on Friday September 09 2016, @05:01PM (#399697) Journal

      That assumes the person you think is the best can be voted for. If you think Bernie Sanders is the best, whom will you vote for?

      --
      The Tao of math: The numbers you can count are not the real numbers.
      • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday September 09 2016, @05:10PM

        by Anonymous Coward on Friday September 09 2016, @05:10PM (#399702)

        I guess it depends on the ballot, but you could write-in whoever you want.

        I don't vote for candidates that I don't like, so I leave the vote blank if I need to.

      • (Score: 2) by bob_super on Friday September 09 2016, @05:12PM

        by bob_super (1357) on Friday September 09 2016, @05:12PM (#399703)

        At this point, what's the margin of reelection for an Obama third term?
        We're ignoring the 4th, the 5th, and often the 1st. I'm pretty sure half of the country would be fine with ignoring the 22nd just this one time...

      • (Score: 3, Informative) by Kromagv0 on Friday September 09 2016, @05:22PM

        by Kromagv0 (1825) on Friday September 09 2016, @05:22PM (#399709) Homepage

        In the case of a true Bernie believer I would say that Jill Stein would likely be the best choice, or maybe Alyson Kennedy of the Socialist Workers Party depending on where you fall on other issues. Those are the ones who are on the MN ballot who at a first glance seem likely to be the best fit.

        --
        T-Shirts and bumper stickers [zazzle.com] to offend someone
  • (Score: 1, Interesting) by Anonymous Coward on Friday September 09 2016, @04:02PM

    by Anonymous Coward on Friday September 09 2016, @04:02PM (#399663)

    Found a neat 'trick' yesterday. Found it on a conservative forum.

    If you are in a 'battleground' state. NC/OH/FL etc. Goto craigslist. Pick a city. Goto jobs and search for 'outreach'.

    You will quickly come across items like this http://charlotte.craigslist.org/csr/5772276212.html [craigslist.org]
    "Community Outreach Group is hiring canvassers to knock on doors and convince people to vote and vote for our endorsed candidates"

    Some are a bit more blatant.
    http://miami.craigslist.org/mdc/npo/5749027375.html [craigslist.org]

    Have not figured out the conservative keyword yet to search for.

    • (Score: 2) by vux984 on Friday September 09 2016, @04:24PM

      by vux984 (5045) on Friday September 09 2016, @04:24PM (#399675)

      Did you somehow think there candidates that weren't hiring people all over the place to help them get elected? To help them convince voters to elect them. I mean from Reince Preibus and the interim person at the DNC on down through the ranks... that's basically what their job is.

      • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday September 09 2016, @04:48PM

        by Anonymous Coward on Friday September 09 2016, @04:48PM (#399690)
    • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday September 09 2016, @04:31PM

      by Anonymous Coward on Friday September 09 2016, @04:31PM (#399682)

      Knocking on doors to pester citizens to vote for your candidate is as American as apple pie.

  • (Score: 2) by Phoenix666 on Friday September 09 2016, @07:50PM

    by Phoenix666 (552) on Friday September 09 2016, @07:50PM (#399767) Journal

    You don't want people who know how to do what the Clintons know how to do anywhere near the Oval Office.

    --
    Washington DC delenda est.
    • (Score: 2) by Thexalon on Friday September 09 2016, @08:22PM

      by Thexalon (636) on Friday September 09 2016, @08:22PM (#399777)

      What exactly do you think the Clintons know how to do that should be kept so far away from the Oval Office? I mean, if they were going to pull something truly nefarious and dangerous, I'd think they'd have done so last time they were there late in Bill's last term.

      --
      The only thing that stops a bad guy with a compiler is a good guy with a compiler.
      • (Score: 2) by Phoenix666 on Saturday September 10 2016, @12:23AM

        by Phoenix666 (552) on Saturday September 10 2016, @12:23AM (#399847) Journal

        They are part and parcel of the Deep State corruption that has brought the country to ruin. They cannot be allowed to return to the Whitehouse. Trump's no paragon, but he might stop TPP and kick a few Wall Street bankers in the nuts. Hillary 100% won't.

        --
        Washington DC delenda est.