Fact-Checking Tools — Video 3: Evaluating Social Media Accounts

Summary

In this BuzzFeed News video, reporters Craig and Jane demonstrate how to discern the authenticity of social media accounts. They advise on evaluating profiles, using reverse image search to verify profile pictures, and assessing the reliability of content shared. The video also highlights the importance of looking for verified badges on accounts, especially those of celebrities or news, to ensure the information is credible and trustworthy.

Takeaways

• 🔍 Craig and Jane are BuzzFeed News reporters dedicated to debunking internet misinformation.
• 🛠️ They share tools, tips, and tricks to help viewers evaluate social media accounts for authenticity.
• 📖 Learning to assess a social media account involves using reverse image search and other tools.
• 🤔 Suspicion often arises with newer accounts, as seen with the account created in February 2017.
• 🖼️ Reverse image search can reveal if a profile photo is stolen or misrepresented, as with the 'Sean Patrick' account.
• 🎭 Fake accounts can have malicious intent or be harmless jokes, but they still spread false information.
• 📚 Analyzing the content shared by an account can help determine the purpose behind a fake account.
• 👀 Being cautious of accounts that use someone else's photo indicates dishonesty and warrants skepticism.
• 💼 Verification badges on platforms like Instagram can help identify legitimate accounts, like the real Kim Kardashian.
• 🚫 Warning signs of fake accounts include unusual account names or bios that suggest the account is for sale.
• 🔑 The verified checkmark on social media platforms is a reliable indicator of an account's legitimacy.

Q & A

Who are Craig and Jane, and what is their profession?

Craig and Jane are reporters at BuzzFeed News, and their job involves debunking false information found on the internet.

What is the main purpose of the tools and tips discussed in the script?

The tools and tips are meant to help viewers evaluate social media accounts to determine if they are genuine or fake.

Why might one be suspicious of a social media account that is relatively new?

Newer accounts can be suspicious because they have not been around for a long time, which might indicate that they are created for deceptive purposes.

What is one method to verify the authenticity of a social media profile picture?

One can use reverse image search on Google to find out if the profile picture has been used elsewhere and by whom, which can reveal if the account is using someone else's photo.

What is the significance of the Twitter account @middlenet_world in the script?

The Twitter account @middlenet_world is used as an example to illustrate how to spot a fake account by analyzing the profile picture and bio.

Why is the name 'Sean Patrick' in the script suspicious?

The name 'Sean Patrick' is suspicious because the profile picture is actually of Jesse Palmer, indicating that the account is using a false identity.

What are some possible motivations behind creating fake social media accounts?

Fake accounts can be created for malicious purposes like spreading false information, harassing or trolling people, or sometimes just as a joke.

How can one verify an Instagram or Snapchat account's authenticity?

One can verify an account by checking for a blue verified check mark, which indicates that the account is legitimate and owned by the person it claims to be.

What is a telltale sign of a fake account as illustrated with the 'kardashians.official' example?

The bio stating 'account for sale if interested please email' is a clear indication that the account is fake, as it is not associated with the real Kim Kardashian.

What is the importance of the verified check mark on social media platforms?

The verified check mark signifies that the account has been authenticated as legitimate by the platform, providing a reliable source of content.

What should one do if they encounter a suspicious social media account?

One should be cautious and skeptical of the information shared by the account, and use tools like reverse image search to verify the authenticity of the account's content.

Outlines

00:00

🕵️‍♂️ Debunking Fake Social Media Accounts

Craig and Jane, reporters from BuzzFeed News, introduce themselves and explain their role in debunking false information on the internet. They offer to share tools, tips, and tricks to help viewers evaluate the authenticity of social media accounts. The main focus is on teaching how to assess a Twitter account's credibility by using reverse image search and analyzing the profile's details, such as the account's age and the user's bio. They demonstrate this by examining a suspicious account under the name Sean Patrick, which uses a stolen image from a well-known personality, revealing the account as fake.

Keywords

💡Debate

Debate refers to a formal discussion on a particular topic in a public setting, often involving opposing arguments. In the context of the video, the theme of debate is not directly mentioned, but the concept of evaluating information could be seen as a form of intellectual debate where one assesses the credibility of sources and arguments presented online.

💡Fake Stuff

In the video, 'fake stuff' refers to false or misleading content found on the internet. The reporters aim to debunk or expose this content as part of their job, which is central to the video's theme of teaching viewers how to critically evaluate information they encounter online.

💡Social Media Account

A social media account is a user profile on a social networking service. The video emphasizes the importance of evaluating these accounts for authenticity, using tools and techniques such as reverse image search to determine if the account is genuine or fake, as illustrated by the example of the Twitter account with the username @middlenet_world.

💡Reverse Image Search

Reverse image search is a method used to find duplicates of a particular image on the internet. The video script describes using this technique to verify the authenticity of a social media profile picture, which is a key part of debunking fake accounts.

💡Profile

In the context of social media, a profile refers to a user's personal page that includes information about themselves. The video discusses analyzing a profile's details, such as the bio and the time of account creation, to assess the reliability of the account, as seen with the account that claimed to be 'Sean Patrick'.

💡Cybercrime

Cybercrime encompasses a broad range of illegal activities that are conducted through the internet. The video mentions a Twitter account using hashtags related to cybercrime, indicating the account's purported focus, which is part of the clues used to evaluate the account's legitimacy.

💡Verification

Verification on social media platforms, often signified by a blue checkmark, confirms the authenticity of a public figure's or brand's account. The video uses verification as a criterion for determining the legitimacy of accounts, particularly in the context of celebrity accounts like Kim Kardashian.

💡Misspelling

A misspelling is an error in the spelling of a word. The script points out misspellings as a potential indicator of a fake account, as seen in the example of a fake Kim Kardashian account where her name is misspelled.

💡Content Sharing

Content sharing refers to the act of distributing or making content available to others, often on social media. The video discusses analyzing the content shared by an account to understand its purpose and to determine if it is spreading false information or engaging in malicious activities.

💡Troll

Trolling is the act of intentionally provoking or upsetting others online, often for personal amusement. The video mentions that fake accounts might be used for trolling, which is one of the negative behaviors that the reporters aim to identify and debunk.

💡Legitimate

Legitimate refers to something that is genuine, real, or authorized. In the video, the term is used in the context of verifying whether a social media account or the content it shares is authentic and trustworthy, as opposed to being a fake or deceptive account.

Highlights

Craig and Jane are reporters at BuzzFeed News specializing in debunking fake content on the internet.

They demonstrate tools and techniques for the audience to evaluate social media accounts for authenticity.

The importance of using reverse image search to verify the profile picture of a social media account.

Analyzing a Twitter account named @middlenet_world, which raises suspicion due to its recent creation date.

The account uses hashtags related to cybercrime but is based in San Antonio, Texas, indicating a possible inconsistency.

Discovering that the profile picture of the account is actually Jesse Palmer, a former NFL player, not Sean Patrick as claimed.

Fake accounts can range from malicious entities spreading false information to simple jokes.

The significance of scrutinizing the content shared by suspicious accounts to determine their intent.

Verifying Instagram or Snapchat accounts by checking for a blue verified checkmark.

Identifying fake accounts by their lack of a verified checkmark or suspicious bio information.

Spotting a fake Kim Kardashian account by the bio's offer to sell the account and a misspelling in the name.

The presence of a verified checkmark as a reliable indicator of a legitimate social media account.

The necessity to be cautious of unverified accounts, especially during breaking news situations.

The role of verified accounts in ensuring the legitimacy of content shared on social media platforms.

The practical application of these techniques to enhance personal media literacy and skepticism.

The potential impact of these debunking methods on reducing the spread of misinformation online.

Transcripts

Hi, I’m Craig.

Hi, I’m Jane.

We’re reporters at BuzzFeed News and our job is to debunk fake stuff on the internet

every day.

So, we’re going to show you some of the tools and tips and tricks that we use so that

you can do it too.

Now it’s time to learn how to evaluate a social media account, so you can use your

skills from reverse image search and other tools to see if its real or fake.

Another key skill is to be able to analyze a social media profile to see if it seems

reliable or not.

So here we have a Twitter account and the guy claims to be named Sean Patrick.

His username is @middlenet_world and from the description in his bio which we want to

read, he uses the hashtag breach, the hashtag hack and he says “exploring cybercrime and

cyber law enforcement” so he says he lives or is based in San Antonio Texas and one of

the things we want to take note of right away is that he joined in February 2017.

So, it’s an account that hasn’t been long for a huge amount of time.

We tend to be more suspicious of newer accounts.

The other thing that you want to do of course now that you know how to reverse image search

is to reverse image search the image on his profile.

So we can do our right click on that image, search Google for the image, and we’re going

to get our results and were going to see where else this is.

Now if you remember, our Twitter account said his name was Sean Patrick but what we see

right away is clearly this is a photo of a guy named Jesse Palmer who used to play in

the NFL and who is Canadian and who now hosts a TV show.

So clearly, Sean Patrick is using somebody else’s photo for his account.

Fake accounts can range from being really malicious and up to no good spreading completely

false information or trying to harass and troll people or sometimes they might just

be someone’s joke.

That’s why we look at the content that they’re sharing, that’s why we try to figure out

what the point is of this fake account existing and at the very least we know to be super

suspicious of everything that that account is putting out because we see that they’re

not being honest about who they are.

Another easy way to look at Instagram or snapchat is to look at whether you can verify the account.

So, for example, there are definitely more than a few different Kim Kardashian accounts

on Instagram but there’s only one real one.

So, in this case we see kardashians.official which might same like a real thing but as

soon as you open it and read the bio it says “account for sale if interested please email”.

That’s a pretty good telltale sign that it’s a fake account.

In the second example, we see a lot of Kim Kardashian related content and a misspelling

of her name but all of those are just screenshots taken from her social media.

And so, what you’re going to be looking for if you’re looking at a celebrity account

or a news account especially if it’s a breaking news situation, you’re going to be looking

for this little blue verified check mark.

That’s going to tell you whether the person who owns the account is really legitimate

and a lot of the time it’s one of the best ways to verify content on social media from

your phone or from your computer.