#ruse-brewing

#ruse-brewing

The administrators behind Military Phony described 'digital stolen valor' as the online equivalent of wearing medals you didn't earn, using exaggerated or fabricated credentials to gain respect, sympathy or opportunity that would otherwise belong to someone else.

The page advertises a variety of products, including smartphones, audio systems, cookers, and TVs, requiring a small deposit from interested customers.

On the morning of the Unite the Right rally, I lumbered down the staircase of a Catskills Airbnb rented for a bachelor party to learn that only hours before, a gang of white nationalists stormed the University of Virginia campus wielding Tiki torches and chanting, 'Jews will not replace us.'

AI-synthesized faces are now perceived as more trustworthy than real human faces. Let that sink in for a second: the fake version of reality is more believable than reality itself. Meanwhile, misinformation spreads six times faster than true information on social media. During a crisis, when stress and fear impair our ability to think critically, the information ecosystem becomes a minefield.

Most days, an email lands in my inbox with the promise to amplify my growth-my newsletter subscribers, the reach of my podcasts, the number of client leads, etc. I've gotten used to random people pitching me on their services, and some of the messages expertly prey on my insecurities as a business owner ("you're leaving so much on the table," et al.). I never answer any of them, but I sometimes wonder which ones might actually be legit.

A short while later, the White House posted the same photo - except that version had been digitally altered to darken Armstrong's skin and rearrange her facial features to make it appear she was sobbing or distraught. The Guardian one of many media outlets to report on this image manipulation, created a handy slider graphic to help viewers see clearly how the photo had been changed.