The upcoming EU election will test the Union’s resilience against disinformation, European Commission Vice President Věra Jourová told the Polish Press Agency (PAP).
The EC official is currently on a “Democracy Tour,” visiting selected EU nations to raise awareness about Russian disinformation and the creation of deepfakes aimed at misleading voters ahead of the forthcoming election.
“Russia has a specific strategy for each member state. We can expect new alarming stories about how migrants threaten our peaceful lives, or that the new European Parliament will quickly ban combustion cars,” the official said.
Jourová has identified the forthcoming EU election, scheduled to take place between June 6 and 9, as a critical test of the Union’s ability to counter disinformation. She expressed concern over the increased efforts by the Kremlin to spread false narratives to influence those voting.Tere hommikust 🇪🇪#Estonia = 11th stop on my #DemocracyTour
— Věra Jourová (@VeraJourova) May 16, 2024
Will discuss fight against #disinformation, foreign interference, defense & geopolitics, #WomenInPublicLife w/ President @AlarKaris, PM @kajakallas, at #lennartmericonference by @ICDS_Tallinn & w/ experts on election pic.twitter.com/kxQsNK2pM8
“Russia has a specific strategy for each member state. We can expect new alarming stories about how migrants threaten our peaceful lives, or that the new European Parliament will quickly ban combustion cars,” the official said.
She added that disinformation campaigns often mix lies with small amounts of truth, making them particularly convincing and dangerous.
Jourová said that she has been warning about Russian propaganda since the annexation of Crimea in 2014. Despite this, the EU did not give the issue sufficient attention until the COVID-19 pandemic, which saw a surge in disinformation, primarily from Russia and China. This wave of false information aimed to undermine trust in the EU and its solidarity.
New technology
Today, the EU considers disinformation one of the biggest threats to the upcoming election. To combat this, the Union has established the European Digital Media Observatory (EDMO), and introduced new digital regulations, fact-checking systems, as well as artificial intelligence legislation.
“Only after the election will we be able to assess whether our measures have been effective,” Jourová said.
She added that while the narratives used by Russia, such as those about Ukrainians, are not new, the technologies used to spread these messages, like social media and digital channels, are. Russia has even attempted to disseminate its propaganda through gaming channels.
Jourová believes that modern technologies should be used to expose disinformation and educate users that what they are seeing might be AI-generated. EU studies show that 70-80% of residents fear being manipulated, indicating that Europeans are aware of the problem. However, these studies do not address people’s susceptibility to such content or their tendency to believe certain stories.
“We believe our fact-checking is already influencing user behavior. We see that when people realize something is wrong with the material, they often refrain from sharing it with friends on social media,” she said.
Jourová said that she has been warning about Russian propaganda since the annexation of Crimea in 2014. Despite this, the EU did not give the issue sufficient attention until the COVID-19 pandemic, which saw a surge in disinformation, primarily from Russia and China. This wave of false information aimed to undermine trust in the EU and its solidarity.
New technology
Today, the EU considers disinformation one of the biggest threats to the upcoming election. To combat this, the Union has established the European Digital Media Observatory (EDMO), and introduced new digital regulations, fact-checking systems, as well as artificial intelligence legislation.
“Only after the election will we be able to assess whether our measures have been effective,” Jourová said.
She added that while the narratives used by Russia, such as those about Ukrainians, are not new, the technologies used to spread these messages, like social media and digital channels, are. Russia has even attempted to disseminate its propaganda through gaming channels.
Jourová believes that modern technologies should be used to expose disinformation and educate users that what they are seeing might be AI-generated. EU studies show that 70-80% of residents fear being manipulated, indicating that Europeans are aware of the problem. However, these studies do not address people’s susceptibility to such content or their tendency to believe certain stories.
“We believe our fact-checking is already influencing user behavior. We see that when people realize something is wrong with the material, they often refrain from sharing it with friends on social media,” she said.
“I want to warn Europeans: You will be the target of disinformation,” Jourová added.#Denmark 🇩🇰 was my 1st virtual but already 10th stop on my #DemocracyTour. 📽️👇
— Věra Jourová (@VeraJourova) May 15, 2024
And tomorrow travelling to 🇪🇪 pic.twitter.com/5iTvTeAoum
Source: PAP, X
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