Twain famously quipped, “A lie can travel halfway around the world while the truth is putting on its shoes.” Ironically, even this quote, intended to highlight the swift spread of falsehoods, has been misattributed to Twain himself – a precursor to the very phenomenon it warns us about. Disinformation.

Of course, disinformation is hardly new, yet its impact is undeniably amplified in the digital age. The rise of advanced AI and large language models has fundamentally altered the landscape of disinformation. While the 2020 U.S. election cycle saw coordinated disinformation campaigns orchestrated by nation-states, the barriers to entry have since dropped precipitously. Meanwhile, the integration of AI tools in creating and spreading false narratives has made it easier and more effective. And thanks to the proliferation of affordable bot networks, the ability to weaponize disinformation is no longer the exclusive province of well-funded nation-states.

This democratization of disinformation poses a real threat not only to our democracy but also to brands across every sector. Consider the plight of election equipment manufacturers like Smartmatic and Dominion, whose reputations were battered by baseless conspiracy theories. Or even the online furniture brand Wayfair, which found itself swept up in a QAnon web of lies.

As Paul Kolbe, Director of the Intelligence Project at Harvard’s Kennedy School wryly observed, “Compared to government targets, the private sector has an even richer and larger playing field and a far more vulnerable audience. And it’s only going to get worse.”

How AI-Enabled Bots Amplify the Noise

While the terms misinformation and disinformation are often used interchangeably, they’re very different animals. Misinformation is often unintentional, spread by people who genuinely believe it to be true. Disinformation, meanwhile, is a deliberate act, crafted and disseminated to mislead, manipulate, or even cause harm. Think of it as a lie masquerading as truth, a weapon wielded with malicious intent.

This weapon becomes all the more potent when paired with a modern bot network, as it amplifies the reach and impact of disinformation at an unprecedented scale. Whereas first-generation bots were once unwieldy and easy to detect, today’s bot networks can create accounts at scale, engage with content in a seemingly human way, and even generate original personalized text, all at a fraction of the cost it once took. In short, it’s become frighteningly cheap and easy to inflict major damage.

Despite their efforts, social media platforms have struggled to contain the tide of bot-driven disinformation. Their algorithms, designed to keep users engaged, often end up rewarding inflammatory content and sensational headlines – the very things bots excel at producing. In an attempt to stem this tide, platforms like X have introduced measures such as charging for verified accounts.

However, this strategy has had limited success in curbing the influence of bots. That’s because many of the most prevalent bot-driven attacks, including account takeovers (ATOs), credential stuffing, SMS pumping and toll fraud, occur outside the traditional log-in process performed by users who haven’t logged in yet (and therefore aren’t subscribed). Advanced bot networks also avoid detection by employing aged “sock puppet” accounts which, unlike new accounts that are easily flagged as suspicious, have been carefully cultivated over time to appear legitimate.

The challenge will only escalate as bad bot operators begin to put generative AI to work for their nefarious purposes. Four years before the public release of ChatGPT, OpenAI researchers expressed their misgivings about the potential misuse of their technology noting the “potential for AI-powered bots to lower the costs of disinformation campaigns,” could allow bad actors to “spread chaos and confusion at scale.” The availability and affordability of AI technologies have opened up new avenues for these malicious entities, allowing them to disseminate false information more effectively and broadly than ever before.

So what can brands do in the face of this evolving threat and how might they protect themselves from becoming the next victim of a coordinated disinformation campaign?

3 Ways Brands Can Keep Bots & Disinformation at Bay 

The hard truth is that there’s little even the largest companies can do to prevent a disinformation campaign. However, while brands may feel at the mercy of the platforms, there are some proactive steps they can take to mitigate the risks and protect themselves:

1. Proactively Monitor Social Platforms: To stay ahead of the disinformation curve, proactive social media monitoring is essential. Investing in robust tools that go beyond surface-level keyword searches and delve into the intricate web of online conversations is a good first step. These tools can analyze vast swathes of data, identify suspicious spikes in activity and detect patterns that indicate bot activity. Real-time alerts tuned to specific keywords, hashtags and shifts in online sentiment around your brand offer early warning of potential disinformation campaigns, allowing for swift action before they escalate. Beyond these individual efforts, it’s crucial to acknowledge the importance of the social media platforms themselves in detecting and mitigating bots – their active participation and deployment of advanced detection systems will be critical in reducing the reach and impact of bot-driven disinformation.

3. Embrace the Power of AI & ML: As bot-driven disinformation tactics evolve, so too must the methods to counter them. This means either adopting advanced AI and ML tools to analyze historical data to identify patterns and predict potential disinformation campaigns before they launch or working with external parties with expertise in this area. Just as disinformation agents leverage AI algorithms to fine tune their strategies and create more convincing fake content, organizations must harness similar technological advancements to stay one step ahead. This involves deploying sophisticated AI models for anomaly detection, sentiment analysis and network behavior analysis, which can discern between authentic interactions and those orchestrated by bots.
4. Collaborate with the Gatekeepers: The battle against bot-driven disinformation can’t be fought in isolation. The platforms that host these online communities bear a significant responsibility to take a more proactive approach in detecting and preventing the creation of fake accounts, which is the root cause of spreading disinformation at scale. By employing modern techniques that can invisibly detect the use of automation at login, these platforms can effectively curb these activities from the get-go. By building bridges with these gatekeepers, companies can expedite the takedown of malicious bots and pave the way for the development and implementation of more effective detection algorithms. This spirit of collaboration also serves to create a pool of shared insights and best practices, enhancing the collective ability to respond to disinformation, which not only bolsters individual efforts but also contributes to a more resilient and informed online community.

In a world where we are increasingly connected and everyone has a bullhorn, the threat posed by disinformation, especially when augmented by sophisticated bot networks and advanced AI, is more acute than ever. This hyper-connectivity amplifies voices, both genuine and malicious, creating a landscape where disinformation can be difficult to parse and travels faster than ever, blurring the lines between what is authentically human and what is not. As these technologies propel disinformation with unprecedented speed and efficiency, it’s up to all of us to become discerning navigators in this digital ocean, ensuring that the waves of truth rise above the tide of lies.