https://arstechnica.com/ai/2024/05/russia-and-china-are-using-openai-tools-to-spread-disinformation/
OpenAI has revealed operations linked to Russia, China, Iran and Israel have been using its artificial intelligence tools to create and spread disinformation, as technology becomes a powerful weapon in information warfare in an election-heavy year.
The San Francisco-based maker of the ChatGPT chatbot said in a report on Thursday that five covert influence operations had used its AI models to generate text and images at a high volume, with fewer language errors than previously, as well as to generate comments or replies to their own posts. OpenAI's policies prohibit the use of its models to deceive or mislead others.
[...] Microsoft-backed OpenAI said it was committed to uncovering such disinformation campaigns and was building its own AI-powered tools to make detection and analysis "more effective." It added its safety systems already made it difficult for the perpetrators to operate, with its models refusing in multiple instances to generate the text or images asked for.
See also:
- How Russia-, China-linked actors use OpenAI for disinformation
- In a first, OpenAI removes influence operations tied to Russia, China and Israel
OpenAI Says Russia, China, and Israel Are Using Its Tools for Foreign Influence Campaigns
(Score: 5, Interesting) by AnonTechie on Monday June 03 2024, @08:49AM (1 child)
‘Israel firm tried to interfere in India’s Lok Sabha elections', says OpenAI
https://www.livemint.com/news/india/israel-firm-tried-to-interfere-in-india-s-lok-sabha-elections-says-openai-11717212819467.html [livemint.com]
Albert Einstein - "Only two things are infinite, the universe and human stupidity, and I'm not sure about the former."
(Score: 3, Touché) by ikanreed on Tuesday June 04 2024, @03:34AM
It's only election interference when it's done by bad countries who are inherently, obviously, unquestionably evil.
The US, UK, or Israel doing it is just good common sense foreign policy.
(Score: 5, Interesting) by RamiK on Monday June 03 2024, @10:12AM (2 children)
The report: https://openai.com/index/disrupting-deceptive-uses-of-AI-by-covert-influence-operations/ [openai.com]
Quick summary of the case studies:
1. Bad Grammar (p.13)
Impact: Low. Category 1 on the breakout scale [brookings.edu].
2. Doppelganger (p.17)
Impact: Low. Category 2 on the breakout scale.
3. Spamouflage (p.23)
Impact: Low. Category 2.
4. International Union of Virtual Media (IUVM) (p.28)
Impact: Low. Category 2.
5. Zero Zeno (p.31)
Impact: Low. Category 2.
----
So, much to do about nothing at least when it comes to the use of AI bots to spread FUD.
Otherwise, only noteworthy detail here I eyed is that the report failed to breakdown the various business-political campaigns run by Stoic. For reference:
- BJP are the leading coalition party in India under Modi's rule. Their demographics are Hindus and they're trade-union friendly. Their opposition is INC whose demographics are southern minorities and are workers-unions friendly.
- Histadrut is the Israeli national trade-union.
The missing link between the two is the privatization of the Haifa port to the Indian Adani group which is strongly tied with Modi's BJP and Histadrut's support of the privatization efforts: https://haipo.co.il/en/item/416565 [haipo.co.il] https://www.livemint.com/market/stock-market-news/adani-group-stocks-surge-up-to-18-as-exit-polls-indicate-modi-win-most-hit-52-week-highs-stock-market-11717389034987.html [livemint.com]
Essentially, money makes for strange bedfellows and it's likely whoever paid Stoic to run a pro-Israel campaign was also involved in prompting the privatization of the port.
compiling...
(Score: 4, Insightful) by Thexalon on Monday June 03 2024, @10:34AM (1 child)
I mean, part of the problem is that if you're going to believe anything a generative chatbot tells you without further verification, you've already proven yourself to be an easily manipulated fool who lacks critical thinking skills, because a generative chatbot trains itself on the open Internet, which means that any idiot can put stuff on Reddit or 4chan that the chatbot will believe.
Combine that with a few articles on your own state media, or private media that's so much your lapdog it might as well be state media, and you're very much in business.
"Think of how stupid the average person is. Then realize half of 'em are stupider than that." - George Carlin
(Score: 5, Interesting) by RamiK on Monday June 03 2024, @01:01PM
FTFY
Btw the Meta report is a separate (quarterly security, separate from OpenAI's) report which can be found here: https://transparency.meta.com/metasecurity/threat-reporting [meta.com]
What's really noteworthy is that while the Israeli CIB networks are criticizing UNRAW and Muslims (p.31), the Iranian CIB networks are making pro-Netanyahu, pro-Ben-Gvir and anti-Hamas posts (p.29).
Without going into further commentary on the actual politics, the fact the journalists have covered these reports so poorly proves my point: Whether it's human or bot, even the most trusted sources for news coverage are just poor quality and manipulative.
compiling...
(Score: 3, Interesting) by Weasley on Monday June 03 2024, @07:29PM
I'm not sure which I would consider more dangerous, content generated by foreign powers, or content generated by our own governments, intelligence agencies, and corporations. I remember a few years ago seeing entire subreddits dedicated to bots just talking to each other...based on earlier versions of ChatGPT. It dawned on my then we have the capability to totally manipulate whole threads, steering the narrative, suppressing opinions, etc....with a bot. Nowadays I see whole political threads that seem to be dominated by comments that don't feel quite organic and they are very much in favor of the establishment. I have suspicions. That capability has already been established. Now we just assume the powers that be, which have continually proven they can't be trusted, can be trusted not to trick and manipulate us?
(Score: 5, Touché) by istartedi on Monday June 03 2024, @08:29PM
It was on the Internet, so it must be true. Nice try, CIA. In jest of course; but this just goes to show what a mess the mere existence of such things can cause. Old school media for the win, maybe; but it's been gutted by the Internet, and now the Internet is shit. Not sure what the real fix is, but we've definitely taken an odd step back.
Appended to the end of comments you post. Max: 120 chars.
(Score: 2) by corey on Tuesday June 04 2024, @10:25AM
Trump uses artificial intelligence to spread disinformation too, and he could be the next leader of the free world.