Facebook\u2019s chief security officer warned that the fake news problem is more complicated and dangerous to solve than the public thinks.<\/p>\n
Alex Stamos, who\u2019s handling the company\u2019s investigation into Russia\u2019s use of the social media platform ahead of the 2016 U.S. presidential election, cautioned about hoping for technical solutions that he says could have unintended consequences of ideological bias.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s very difficult to spot fake news and propaganda using just computer programs, Stamos said in a series of Twitter posts on Saturday.<\/p>\n
\u201cNobody of substance at the big companies thinks of algorithms as neutral,\u201d Stamos wrote, adding that the media is simplifying the matter. \u201cNobody is not aware of the risks.\u201d<\/p>\n
The easy technical solutions would boil down to silencing topics that Facebook is aware are being spread by bots — which should only be done \u201cif you don\u2019t worry about becoming the Ministry of Truth\u201d with machine learning systems \u201ctrained on your personal biases,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Stamos\u2019s comments shed light on why Facebook added 1,000 more people review its advertising, rather than attempting an automated solution.<\/p>\n
The company sent a note to advertisers telling them it would start to manually review ads targeted to people based on politics, religion, ethnicity or social issues. The company is trying to figure out how to monitor use of its system without censoring ideas, after the Russian government used fake accounts to spread political discord in the US ahead of the election.<\/p>\n
\u201cA lot of people aren\u2019t thinking hard about the world they are asking [Silicon Valley] to build,\u201d Stamos wrote. \u201cWhen the gods wish to punish us they answer our prayers.\u201d<\/p>\n
Facebook has turned over more than 3,000 ads purchased by Russian entities to congressional investigators looking into Russian influence on the election. Twitter Inc. has said it gave the panels a roundup of advertisements by RT, formerly known as Russia Today, a TV network funded by the Russian government.<\/p>\n
Officials from Facebook, Twitter and Alphabet Co.\u2019s Google are set to testify to Congress on the matter on Nov. 1.<\/p>\n