Trustworthiness on the Web

Fake news is usually defined as “fabricated information that mimics news media content in form but not in organizational process or intent”. Their presence has been documented in several contexts, such as politics, vaccinations, food habits, and financial markets to name but a few.
Despite false stories had always been circulated over the course of the past centuries, why are we so particularly concerned about them now? While the advent of the Internet has facilitated the access to news, it has also led to a proliferation of user-generated content, unscreened by any moderator.
Usually, fake news is published on some little-known outlet, and amplified through social media posts, quite often using so-called social bots. These software agents can mimic the behavior of a genuine account and maliciously generate artificial hype.
The research topic “Trustworthiness on the Web”, analysed by the Trust, Security and Privacy research unit, explores new approaches to uncovering fake news and social bots.

Contact point: Marinella Petrocchi