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India, WhatsApp's Largest Market, Asks Messaging Service To Curb Spread of False Messages in the Nation (reuters.com)

Posted by msmash on from the are-you-listening-Facebook? dept.

India has asked Facebook-owned WhatsApp messenger to take steps to prevent the circulation of false texts and provocative content that have led to a series of lynchings and mob beatings across the country in the past few months. From a report: With more than 200 million users in India, WhatsApp's biggest market in the world, false news and videos circulating on the messaging app have become a new headache for social media giant Facebook, already grappling with a privacy scandal. So far this year, false messages about child abductors on WhatsApp have helped to trigger mass beatings of more than a dozen people in India -- at least three of whom have died. In addition, five people were beaten to death by a mob on Sunday in a fresh incident of lynching in India's western state of Maharashtra on suspicions that they were child abductors. "Deep disapproval of such developments has been conveyed to the senior management of WhatsApp and they have been advised that necessary remedial measures should be taken," India's IT ministry said in a strongly-worded statement on Tuesday. From a report published on The Washington Post earlier this week: As India's government weighs what to do, local authorities have been left to tackle fake news as best they can, issuing warnings and employing low-tech methods such as hiring street performers and "rumor busters" to visit villages to spread public awareness. One such "rumor buster" was killed by a mob Thursday in the eastern state of Tripura.

53 comments

  1. Seems the solution is obvious by TimMD909 · · Score: 2

    The solution to the issue of Fake News seems obvious enough: teach people how to think critically. With a properly functioning bullshit meter, fake news is nothing more than a minor annoyance. Without one at all, it's malignant.

    Unfortunately, the implementation of that is damn near impossible. The vast majority don't have time to fact check multiple sources for everything they read in the news. For some, anything beyond a drastically simplified thumbnail is beyond their comprehension. For others still, ideological possession makes it impossible for them to see another's viewpoint as anything more than an existential threat.

    1. Re:Seems the solution is obvious by ShanghaiBill · · Score: 1

      teach people how to think critically.

      Can you provide an example of this ever happening on a national scale?

    2. Re:Seems the solution is obvious by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      It takes a certain level of intelligence to comprehend what is fact or fake.

    3. Re:Seems the solution is obvious by Zorro · · Score: 1

      Critical thinking skills? That's crazy talk!

    4. Re:Seems the solution is obvious by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      We need more technical schools after high school and less college.
      See why they're pushing that line now?

    5. Re:Seems the solution is obvious by Billy+the+Mountain · · Score: 1

      Unfortunately, the implementation of that is damn near impossible.

      Naw, piece of cake: Set up a deep learning algo to classify packets as: 1. Lie, 2. Indeterminant, 3. True. Then just filter out the #1s. Done!

      --
      That was the turning point of my life--I went from negative zero to positive zero.
    6. Re:Seems the solution is obvious by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I heard a radio show the other day where the guy was complaining that nobody has a sense of humor anymore and that his producer is so uptight now about fake news ... His example of a joke is that Trump appointed William Shatner as director of NASA.

      It's funny if you're at a comedy club. It's NOT funny when it's on the internet, posing as real news. Because yes, some people don't realize it's a joke, and yes, sometimes people DO weird, insane, ridiculous, dastardly things.

      So instead of laughing at "how dumb people are" let's just be responsible and mature about it and label our content... Is it a joke ? Is it real news? Is it sattire?

      People who yell "fire" or pull the fire alarm in a crowded place when they know there isn't a fire, and post fake news, and people who "swat" are in the same bucket... They are causing chaos , sometimes violence, and it's intentional.

      Every modern country should enact a law that treats such malevolent misinformation attacks and campaigns the same as their worst crimes such as murder, abduction, and treason, and prosecute.

      To avoid a chilling effect on free speech, such laws should state that if you clearly and accurately label the content then you do not have any liability for what someone does with it. Like a cancer warning on a box of cigarettes.

    7. Re:Seems the solution is obvious by Atmchicago · · Score: 1

      The solution to the issue of Fake News seems obvious enough: teach people how to think critically.

      Agreed. Furthermore, there are more direct, and appropriate, solutions for combating mob violence than government censorship. People who commit violent crimes should be put on trial and sent to jail.

      --

      You can lead a horse to water, but you can't make it dissolve.

    8. Re:Seems the solution is obvious by Solandri · · Score: 1

      Good luck with that. This isn't some new problem which only popped up recently with the advent of social media. It's been happening since the beginning of civilization. Social media is what happens when you dial up the rumor and gossip mill to 11.

      It's forcing us to deal with all sorts of ethical issues, such as personal responsibility for repeating a false rumor, which we previously were able to ignore because they happened much less frequently. But the issues themselves are not new. In most fields (e.g. medicine, law, engineering) the issue is mitigated by accrediting individuals after they've proven to some regulatory body that they know what they're doing. But accrediting the media falls afoul of the concept of freedom of the press and freedom of speech, so it remains in a Wild West-like state where pretty much everyone can do whatever they want, including the rumor-mongers and gossips.

    9. Re:Seems the solution is obvious by dgatwood · · Score: 2

      It's funny if you're at a comedy club. It's NOT funny when it's on the internet, posing as real news. Because yes, some people don't realize it's a joke, and yes, sometimes people DO weird, insane, ridiculous, dastardly things.

      No, it's not funny on the Internet, but the reason it isn't funny is because it is so believable. Trump has a history of appointing people to key positions who have absolutely zero background in the area that they are supposed to be running, like naming DeVos as secretary of education. Shatner at least has some appreciation of what NASA does, so it wouldn't be his worst appointment by a fairly large margin.

      When reality has become so bizarre that no sane person would have believed it possible just a few years ago, any attempt at separating truth from fiction is impossible without significant amounts of independent research, which is why fake news is spreading so easily. We brought it on ourselves.

      --

      Check out my sci-fi/humor trilogy at PatriotsBooks.

    10. Re:Seems the solution is obvious by loonycyborg · · Score: 1

      I don't think it's about critical thinking. Pretty much everyone can figure out that such information source can be fake. What if they just really want to kill people for different reasons and take this as excuse?

    11. Re: Seems the solution is obvious by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      It's forcing us to deal with all sorts of ethical issues, such as personal responsibility for repeating a false rumor, which we previously were able to ignore because they happened much less frequently.

      That says a lot about you, who was able to ignore the pointless deaths of individuals to hysterical mob rage simply because you could dismiss it with so blithe a level of indifference.

      Good show.

    12. Re:Seems the solution is obvious by nnet · · Score: 1

      You mean like teaching people to be actively involved in civic duty? Or be respectful? Or not be avaricious/greedy/narcissistic?

    13. Re:Seems the solution is obvious by tlhIngan · · Score: 1

      No, it's not funny on the Internet, but the reason it isn't funny is because it is so believable. Trump has a history of appointing people to key positions who have absolutely zero background in the area that they are supposed to be running, like naming DeVos as secretary of education. Shatner at least has some appreciation of what NASA does, so it wouldn't be his worst appointment by a fairly large margin.

      Hell, Trump himself is unqualified to talk about trade, or business, having neither run a successful business (seriously, how do you lose money on a casino?) Heck, he doesn't even bother trying to educate himself on what he doesn't know. He's just trot out the exact same industry lines that everyone keeps saying that isn't quite the turth, but a good soundbite. (E.g., "regulations are bad", or "environmental regulations cost jobs" and the like).

      Hell, given his praise for dictators as "good people" and the like, and his disdain for leaders of what is regarded as the free world, one even wonders if he's taken an American History class

      When reality has become so bizarre that no sane person would have believed it possible just a few years ago, any attempt at separating truth from fiction is impossible without significant amounts of independent research, which is why fake news is spreading so easily. We brought it on ourselves.

      Even worse is when Trump purposefully redefined "Fake News" as "news that makes me look bad". Yes, that's what he calls Fake News. Anytime a headline puts him in a less than flattering light, it's fake news. Doens't matter if it's completely true, either. As long as it makes Trump look bad, i t's Fake News.

      Likewise, the ability to only speak the truth is hard - there are so many nuances that half truths really proliferate.

      One thing Trump is good at, is his speech training. He was groomed which is why he never uses joiner or filler words like "um" or "ah". When his mouth runs faster than his brain, he's been conditioned to simply repeat the last words over and over again. It's why you have him repeating things like "this'll make them happy, really happy, they'll be happy" That's his speech training going into action.

      The unfortunate side effect is that repetition is considered to be one way to get your point across so every time he does that, he's basically reinforcing the point until people believe it's true.

    14. Re:Seems the solution is obvious by corydoras · · Score: 1

      But if you teach critical thinking in schools, they'll realize that school is bullshit.

    15. Re:Seems the solution is obvious by morethanapapercert · · Score: 1
      I agree with the need for teaching critical thinking skills to the public, I've thought it was desperately needed since I was old enough to understand what hypocrisy was.

      There are several hurdles to overcome however, some of them I think are unsolvable:

      1) Collectively; the human race isn't as smart as it thinks it is. The larger the group, the lower the effective IQ of that group. Critical thinking is hard compared to the sort of thought processes the vast majority of us use daily. Even on a self selected group like us slashdotters, every day on this site we see numerous examples of people saying things so stupid that it's hard or impossible to figure out what sort of thought process could lead to such statements.

      2) Teaching critical thinking is best done when the person is young. You can teach a 5 year old basic critical thinking skills. The majority of grade school students can understand logical fallacies like post hoc propter hoc, confirmation bias, contradiction of terms and so on. (granted, you'd have to use plain language, avoid Latin etc) Making ANY major change to how education of our young is enormously difficult. Look at the push back the educational system gets from subjects like teaching evolution and sex ed.

      3) One of the things that cause the push back in #2 is large enough to justify it's own position on this list: Religion, particularly organized religion. In school, teaching evolution and safe sex contradicts core values of some rather large religious groups. When you combine that with the fact that when critical thinking is applied to any religion, the entire structure falls apart. (virtually all religions, certainly all the Abrahamic religions are based on the assumption that all of Creation must have a Creator.) The vitriol aimed at evolution and sex ed would be a spit in the bucket compared to what the threat of critical thinking in kids would provoke.

      4) The reason why critical thinking is hard is because it goes against the grain of our evolved mental patterns. Our brains are wired to make assumptions, to fill in gaps of data with guesses, to make quick but sloppy categories of things. From the utterly basic of saccades movements and unfocused peripheral vision with the brain filling in the differences so seamlessly that we don't even notice it, to the assumptions that a persons appearance is a reliable indicator of their inner traits. (gender bias, race bias, good looking bias etc) We share a lot of common neurological structures with the other mammals, particularly the other primates. Because of that, we have the same instincts, rules of thumb and emotional make up as those primates. Modern man and the civilization it has created is a triumph over those base patterns, but that doesn't mean those base patterns have disappeared. Because it's hard, many of those we teach those critical thinking skills won't bother to use them once they are out of school. In our culture, you can survive and even thrive without critical thinking. The only downside is being easy to manipulate by others, and for most people that is an abstract risk that is hard to properly understand (ironically, critical thinking skills would help)

      --
      I need a wheelchair van for my son. Help me get the word out. https://www.gofundme.com/wheelchair-van-for-jj
    16. Re:Seems the solution is obvious by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      implying there is no truth to a rumor. this is just government demanded censorship.

    17. Re:Seems the solution is obvious by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Critical thinking? That cure is worse than the disease. Before you know it people will apply those skills towards things like claims made by politicians of their own affiliation, or even worse, when voting. That is horrible. Why do you hate freedom?

    18. Re:Seems the solution is obvious by eaglesrule · · Score: 0

      Why casinos fail, for those incapable of recognizing that operating a casino is not a license to print money.

      If someone only had a junk food diet of msm news, never dug up source material to see for themselves the very speeches of which Trump is so highly criticized for when defining all immigrants as "criminals" and "rapists" and "animals", then they might believe your point about fake news because they need to be told what to think.

      "he's basically reinforcing the point until people believe it's true." is projection, from the paid trolls to the blue checkmarks alike. I know Trump lies, but his critics are proving to be even less trustworthy. The Time cover of crying girl fits the bill perfectly.

    19. Re: Seems the solution is obvious by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Actually, the problem is that people don't pay attention to what Trump is saying or doing, and this includes the various journalists who never report on the actual incompetence of the Trump administration, equivocate about his deceits and falsehoods, and never follow-up on his alleged accomplishments.

      Trump has made wild, bigoted, and baseless accusations, and even the Supreme Court is unable to admit that they need to look at the reasons for his actions, but instead retreats behind the phony shield they erected to distance themselves from responsibility.

    20. Re:Seems the solution is obvious by angel'o'sphere · · Score: 1

      People who commit violent crimes should be put on trial and sent to jail.
      After they commited the crime. Obviously that is what is happening.

      Obviously you don't grasp that the government prefers to prevent the crime ... bad bad government.

      --
      Cost free eBook I read (by iBook/Kobo/Amazon/ObookO/Gutenberg etc.): "The Green Odyssey" by Philip Jose Farmer.
    21. Re: Seems the solution is obvious by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      It appears the government of India is interested in suppressing mass dissent. And is using a handful of isolated nasty crimes as a pretext for censoring speech that's unpalatable to the ruling castes.

    22. Re:Seems the solution is obvious by tehcyder · · Score: 1

      But if you teach critical thinking in schools, they'll realize that school is bullshit.

      Then they can change the schools.

      If you think all education/learning is bullshit, there is something wrong with you.

      --
      To have a right to do a thing is not at all the same as to be right in doing it
    23. Re:Seems the solution is obvious by vaibhav.dlv · · Score: 1

      Heck, even when people are taught all the good things, most of them shall ignore the teachings and do whatever the hell they want to do! That's humanity - free will et all!!!

  2. Re:Better block Trump's Twitter account then by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Move to India then.

  3. Make a deal with them by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Demand toilets be installed and USED by them, and demand that they stop dumping human corpses in their rivers, and then washing the dishes in said rivers.

    Thank you very much,
    Pakimahn!

    1. Re: Make a deal with them by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Napakmahn,
      There are issues in all the countries.. Especially with social media.. A tool given to masses without any guidance or advice. Now we started to see all the side effects of the social media. Not that it is bad but in the wrong hand could be dangerous.

  4. Re:Why India? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    > Then again the majority of India is Muslim. Yep, I said it, Muslim.
    You're woefully ignorant. The majority of India is Hindu (about 80%). Only 14% is Muslim.

    Or maybe you ignorantly think "Muslim, Hindu, same thing..."

  5. Re:Why India? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Stuff like this has been a "thing" in India a long time.

    Monkey-man-of-Delhi

    Mass hysteria like this is not new, and it's not even an Internet thing as older examples exist. While not exclusive to India, instances are not at all uncommon there either.

  6. Re:Why India? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Jane, you ignorant slut.

    I am honestly not sure which is worse. The righties with Trump's dick solidly in their arse, and the lefties afraid to show their faces whilst they rampage around like toddlers on a temper tantrum.

    But at least look up what is the majority religion in India. Bollocks!

  7. How about India educates its mob instead by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    So that they don't behave like ignorant savages?

    1. Re:How about India educates its mob instead by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      because that works so well in 'murika.

  8. Re:Better block Trump's Twitter account then by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    No thanks, I pay for prisons with my taxes so criminal morons like Trump have somewhere to go where they're properly respected for what they are: Scumbags.

  9. Vigilante Justice by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    What you have here is not a WhatsApp problem so much as it is a vigilante justice problem. The rumors discussed in the article all share an urgent agenda: take action to protect yourself and your family. I have never seen a good decision come out of a lynch mob, but the fact that an angry mob coalesced around fake news is a symptom of mistrust in police's ability or willingness to protect the community from real (or imagined) danger.

    I think about community relations with police in my home, and I honestly could see this happening here given enough provocation. After the Boston Marathon bombing, well-meaning people on social media spread information about a misidentified suspect. That could have ended really badly. Fortunately, police released details of actual suspects and caught them soon after.

  10. We're reaching corporate levels of truth here by HeckRuler · · Score: 1

    Ah, Facebook. The ultimate authority when it comes to legally binding decisions of what is True and what is False. I'm sure this will end well.

    1. Re:We're reaching corporate levels of truth here by iggymanz · · Score: 1

      no, clearly murderous mobs in India are that ultimate authority. Let's look down on them a bit more than facebook, eh?

  11. Re:Why India? by Zontar+The+Mindless · · Score: 1

    Your posts are not being taken down. You need to learn how Slashdot and the moderation system actually work. And cacheing.

    --
    Il n'y a pas de Planet B.
  12. Comment removed by account_deleted · · Score: 1

    Comment removed based on user account deletion

  13. Re:Why India? by angel'o'sphere · · Score: 1

    Muslim in India are a minority, stupid idiot.
    And what has that to do with "fake news" or "lynching" anyway?

    No one takws posts down on /. your stupid post will be available for everyone who is interested, for ever. Or as long as the "internet still works".

    --
    Cost free eBook I read (by iBook/Kobo/Amazon/ObookO/Gutenberg etc.): "The Green Odyssey" by Philip Jose Farmer.
  14. One more by eaglesrule · · Score: 1

    Great post. But this relates to #3, and that is useful idiots are useful. Not just participation in religion would suffer from actively reinforcing critical thinking from an early onset, but so too would be the effectiveness of political propaganda. To condition the public to be more resistant to manipulation would not be in the interest of the state as we know it.

    1. Re: One more by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      You will burn in hell and before you do, godfearing Christians will make your life a living one. This is justice, righteousness.

  15. Re:Why India? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    > Then again the majority of India is Muslim. Yep, I said it, Muslim.
    You're woefully ignorant. The majority of India is Hindu (about 80%). Only 14% is Muslim.

    Or maybe you ignorantly think "Muslim, Hindu, same thing..."

    The same thing in that they are both violent, intolerant and generally lacking in critical thinking skills.

  16. Re: Better block Trump's Twitter account then by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Eurotrolls do NOT pay taxes for the American Gulag.

    Go home, Fritz. Take your "Europa uber allies" and shove it.

  17. End-to-End Encryption by secondhand_Buddah · · Score: 1

    The obvious point is that Whatsapp runs on end-to-end encryption, so it cannot be censored or monitored by design, so what the Indian government want is irrelevant.

    --
    Participatory Governance : The only feasible option for a real democracy, where everyone really does have a say.
  18. Fake messages? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    What is a fake message? Like an email with both subject and body empty? It looks like you got a new message, but the email doesn't actually contain a message.

    "The Earth collapsed into a black hole yesterday" is a message. It may not be a useful one or even true, but it's still a message.

  19. INDIANS are the problem. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Why isn't this happening in white countries? Why aren't white people beating other whites to death on the suspicion of being 'child abductors'? Could it possibly have anything to do with Indian DNA, and the fact that India is a shithole country?

    1. Re:INDIANS are the problem. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      It has to do with people not trusting the police and the government, which is common when corruption and government incompetence is too high.
      And "white people" are not beating other white people to death but they have been known to beat to death non-white people for fake reasons too, and your blatant racism shows that you are not too far from that.

  20. "Fake News" is Fake News - It's PRETEXT. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    "Fake News" is Fake News - It's PRETEXT.