The Digital Rights Project issued a report on the phenomenon of digital identity impersonation in Yemen, and its risks and consequences that cast a shadow on individuals and society as a whole.
The report, entitled The phenomenon of digital identity impersonation in Yemen, Motives and consequences – said Digital identity impersonation is a growing phenomenon in Yemen, especially with the increasing use of social media platforms, and the accompanying emergence of various forms of plagiarism, through the creation of fake accounts for abusive purposes.
The report argued that the ongoing conflict and political polarization in the country have led to an increase in the spread of fake accounts on social media platforms, which are used by various parties to spread propaganda, manipulate public opinion, and influence political discourse, which calls for identifying this problem, and highlighting its repercussions on individuals, entities, and society in general.
The report added that the parties to the conflict in Yemen use fake accounts on social media to spread biased narratives, which amplify certain events and points of view, by pretending as real people, or impersonating characters from the opposition parties, to publish information and statements to cause division in the ranks of those parties.
The report (The Phenomenon of Digital Impersonation) considered that fake accounts on social media contribute significantly to the creation of a hostile environment on the Internet, by spreading hate speech and inciting violence, harassing and bullying others, slandering and defaming them, and promoting divisive and polarizing ideologies, not to mention the use of these accounts to amplify extremist views, all of which, makes the Internet environment a toxic and hostile environment.
It pointed out that these accounts undermine societal cohesion, by spreading misleading and tendentious information, creating a crowd of hostile content, in addition to fueling tensions and disputes, and undermining trust between different parties, thus weakening social ties and exacerbating existing divisions. The use of fake accounts to manipulate public opinion also produces a distorted view of reality, where individuals are exposed to one point of view, and different other visions are absent.
On the role of official authorities in addressing the phenomenon of plagiarism, the report pointed to the absence of an official role in combating cybercrime in general, and the lack of procedures supposed to be followed in monitoring and controlling to pursue of criminals, as well as the absence of a law regulating the digital space. In this vacuum, fact-checking platforms and activists have emerged in combating fake accounts and ousting their creators.
The report criticized the role of social platform companies in combating fake accounts, saying that the efforts and procedures they follow to address the phenomenon of plagiarism are not enough, noting that there are huge numbers of fake accounts and pages that share offensive and divisive content, without the management of the platforms - Facebook or Twitter - taking any action about them.
The report explained that one of the weaknesses in Facebook's response mechanism and its handling of fake accounts, and the content it publishes, lies in the platform's reliance on its user community to report such content, and the delay in responding until it reaches a certain level of popularity, while it is easier to use artificial intelligence to monitor text content in real-time.
The report issued by the Digital Rights Project in Yemen added that social media channels have very few commercial incentives to get rid of fake accounts, as the entire advertising model depends on the average number of monthly users, especially when these fake accounts generate interaction via likes and retweets that affect the algorithm of popular content displayed to users.
These days, impersonators are savvier at camouflaging and complicating the task of tracking fake accounts. However, any action on the Internet leaves digital fingerprints that allow social media investigators to track and detect the perpetrator. In addition, some procedures can be followed to find out if an account is fake or real, such as using search engines to check if the said person is on other social networks that use the same name, using the reverse image search method, in addition to observing the person's interests and behavior online, the date the profile was created, etc.
The report advised the public to refrain from following or interacting with fake accounts in any way, and to report them immediately, as a first step to addressing the phenomenon of plagiarism, warning users not to respond to requests for money transfers sent by anonymous persons, disclose personal information, or click on any attached link.
The report called on the media, journalists, media professionals and activists not to circulate the content of fake accounts, and instead to play an awareness role in exposing these accounts and exposing their creators and informing the public of the tactics and means used by trolls in practicing cybercrime through fake impersonation.
The Digital Rights Team also called on donor organizations and institutions to invest in supporting platforms concerned with "combating cybercrime" and providing them with the necessary capabilities, especially "initiatives" to verify the information and detect disinformation.
The authors of the report recommended that the parties to the conflict not engage in an electronic conflict that lacks ethics and value practices, or resort to the use of fake accounts to spread their propaganda, enhance their perceptions of the situation, and distort the other party.
The report stressed the need to work on the issuance of the "Cybercrime Law", provided that the matter is subject to in-depth discussions with various stakeholders, so that the provisions of the law are specific, clear, accurate and relevant, and in a way that does not contribute to restricting freedom of opinion and expression or leading to violating the privacy of individuals and harming them. It also stressed the importance of pushing for the establishment of a national center to respond to cyber incidents, and the use of experts and specialists in this field, as well as the rehabilitation and training of judges, investigators, and all persons concerned with dealing with cybercrime.
The report suggested on social media platforms to take a proactive approach to detect and remove fake accounts by implementing automated detection and reporting systems, using human intermediaries to review and remove fake accounts, and dealing with audit requests seriously and responsibly. In addition to partnering with local "fact-checking" initiatives, working with local organizations to promote awareness of the problem, and providing education and training to users on how to identify and report fake accounts.
It is worth noting that the report (The Phenomenon of Digital Identity Impersonation in Yemen.. Motives and Consequences) is the ninth within the digital rights project, which is implemented by SAM with the support of Internews, with the aim of advocating for digital rights issues for Yemenis, leading to a free and safe digital space.