<?xml version="1.0" encoding="ISO-8859-1"?> <docID>340650</docID> <postdate>2025-03-19 09:56:55</postdate> <headline>Meta to mark AI, deepfakes to shield election integrity</headline> <body><p><img class=" wp-image-340651" src="https://citynews.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/20250218164997542830-original-1-scaled.jpg" alt="" width="641" height="427" /></p> <caption>Meta will require posts generated by AI or digitally manipulated to carry a disclaimer. (Dominic Giannini/AAP PHOTOS)</caption> <p class="wire-column__preview__author"><span class="kicker-line">By <b>Dominic Giannini</b> in Canberra</span></p> <p><strong>Major social media platforms will work to combat voting interference during the Australian election as voters face misinformation during the political campaign.</strong></p> <p>Meta, the parent company of Facebook, Instagram and Threads, will require posts generated by artificial intelligence or digitally manipulated to carry a disclaimer.</p> <p>It follows concerns realistic deepfakes - digitally altered images, video or audio that are becoming harder to detect - could be used to spread disinformation and fake news during the election campaign.</p> <p><a href="https://about.fb.com/news/2024/02/labeling-ai-generated-images-on-facebook-instagram-and-threads/">Photorealistic content in ads created by Meta AI</a> will carry a label as will generated images users post to Facebook, Instagram and Threads from Google, OpenAI, Microsoft, Adobe, Midjourney and Shutterstock.</p> <p>More prominent labels will be added to altered images, video or audio "that creates a high risk of deceiving the public on a matter of importance", Meta said.</p> <p>Ads that don't adhere will be rejected and repeat offenders will face penalties.</p> <p>Advertisers who run ads about social issues, elections or politics also have to include authorisations including a "paid for by" disclaimer and they're accessible on Meta's publicly available library.</p> <p>Training sessions are run with candidates and political parties ahead of the election to ensure they have the correct authorisations during the campaign.</p> <p>Analysing other elections worldwide, Meta found concerns about the rampant spread of deepfakes and misinformation didn't materialise in a significant way.</p> <p>While such posts were used, they were low in volume, which echoes what Australia's acting electoral commissioner said about deepfakes during the US election.</p> <p>Fewer than one per cent of fact-checked misinformation on posts about social issues, elections and politics were AI-generated, Meta determined.</p> <p>The company is also working to track co-ordinated foreign influence operations and says it has taken down more than 200 of these networks since 2017.</p> <p>"This is a highly adversarial space where deceptive campaigns we take down continue to try to come back and evade detection by us and other platforms," it noted.</p> <p>Misinformation that could lead to imminent physical harm or election interference will be removed per Meta's policies.</p> <p>The company is drawing on experiences from global elections, including India, Britain and the US, it said.</p> <p>Meta continues to work with Agence France-Presse and Australian Associated Press to fact-check posts and those that are debunked will carry a warning label and have distribution limited, so they're less likely to be seen.</p> <p>It is also working with the Australian Electoral Commission to connect voters to verified information across its platforms, the company said.</p> <p>Users will receive a reminder to vote on polling day.</p> </body>