Get The 411 On Misinformation, Disinformation And Malinformation

Perry Carpenter is Chief Evangelist for KnowBe4 Inc., provider of the popular Security Awareness Training & Simulated Phishing platform.

People are exposed to misinformation and disinformation continuously. Whether it’s extremist groups pedaling conspiracy and violence everywhere from Michigan to Germany, untold millions of people consume and spread disinformation and misinformation every day online. Even the WHO flagged the word “infodemic.”

Elon Musk’s recent takeover of Twitter revived the debate between free speech, content moderating and censorship. As the author of two books on security culture and awareness, I’m witnessing an alarming rate of organized cyber criminals and state-sponsored terrorists increasingly weaponizing information to distort, exploit, target and manipulate people. But before diving deeper, let’s first start by clarifying the distinction between misinformation and disinformation.

Disinformation vs. Misinformation vs. Malinformation

The principal difference between misinformation, disinformation and malinformation is the intent of the person or entity providing the information. Misinformation is the broader term and it refers to any false or misleading information. Misinformation could be a trusted friend relaying a plausible-sounding tidbit of information they themselves believe to be true when, in fact, the information is incorrect.

Disinformation, on the other hand, is intentional. People or entities spreading disinformation know that the information is false or misleading and they want to deceive or mislead their audiences.

And malinformation often stems from the truth but is exaggerated or contextually misrepresented in ways that can mislead and cause potential harm.

For my purposes here, though, when I discuss false information—I’ll refer to that as misinformation. When I write about intentionally false or misleading information, I’ll use the more specific term disinformation.

Types And Examples Of Misinformation

The Columbia Journalism Review describes six types of misinformation seen in the context of American elections, and these categories are also applicable outside of politics. For example, corporations may supply misinformation to improve their corporate image by downplaying environmental issues or to goose sales by exaggerating the benefits of products or services.

The six types of misinformation are below, along with examples to help illustrate each type.

1. Authentic Material Used In The Wrong Context

This is information (including images, videos, audio recordings, etc.) that is authentic in the sense that the content itself hasn’t been manufactured for purposes of misleading anyone. However, the context in which the content is provided is misleading. For example, scammers often doctor images of celebrities to secure fake endorsements for their products and services and trick individuals and businesses into unscrupulous schemes and programs.

2. Imposter Sites Designed To Look Like Brands We Already Know

Imposter news sites are unquestionably a form of disinformation. It’s hard to argue that someone would have created a fake version of a legitimate news source and published false information attributable to that source by mistake. For example, scammers recently impersonated pharma giant Eli Lilly and Company using a fake (but verified) Twitter account and announced that they were giving away free insulin. Eli Lilly’s stock share price tumbled by 4.37% following the bogus announcement.

3. Fake News Sites

A related concept is the creation of fake news sites that don’t impersonate an existing legitimate news source but creates a fake news source that seems legitimate. This is often referred to as “Pink Slime” journalism (paywall) and is frequently used in the context of outside entities posing as local news outlets to push some sort of political agenda.

4. Fake Information

Fake information is perhaps what comes to mind first and foremost when people hear the word “disinformation.” Fake information is just another way to label a lie. For example, researchers recently discovered company websites that had fake “About Us” pages, full of fake names and pictures of employees that don’t actually exist. Using such techniques, scammers can improve credibility of their businesses and project themselves as a big and trusted company in front of prospects.

5. Manipulated Content

Manipulated content blurs the lines between some of the other examples of misinformation I’ve discussed. This starts with a genuine article, image, video, etc., and then modifies some aspect of that content to deceive others. For example, a sensationalized news headline or social media post that is designed as clickbait by fraudsters to manipulate victims into opening the article, visiting the website or downloading an attachment.

6. Parody Content

Parody content is often created initially without the intent to deceive anyone but can later be used unwittingly or wittingly by others to back up dubious claims. Phishers often exploit parody content policies on social media platforms like Twitter to scam victims.

Avoiding The Mis/Disinformation Trap

The hearts and minds of all kinds of consumers are valuable prizes, which means misinformation sources are continually coming up with new ways to deceive and mislead. That makes it increasingly difficult for the average media consumer to identify potential misinformation.

A few simple tips can help businesses go a long way in avoiding such traps:

• Teach employees to practice a healthy dose of online skepticism. If something seems too over-the-top to be true, dig a little deeper to verify the questionable information.

• Ask staff to pay attention to the sources of information. Is the source a trusted media outlet with full-time fact checkers on staff, or is it a genuine government source? Or is it an outlet you’ve never heard of before or an entity with an agenda it may be pushing?

• Keep employees informed and updated on emerging threats and misinformation trends to better understand the strategies bad actors are currently using.

• Encourage conversations and sharing of experiences to help your team become more savvy about how to avoid falling prey to falsehoods.

• Do your part to stop the spread. Double check information before re-posting or sharing with others. Don’t trust other businesses just by their website or followers. Do your own due diligence to verify their credibility and authenticity.

Everyone is waging a battle against mis- and disinformation. As a leader, you can help. Commit to providing ongoing awareness and communication to help sort what’s real from what’s not.

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