Exposing AI Scams: The Rise of Clickbait and Fake News through Artificial Intelligence
When Two Ex-Tech Workers Uncovered an AI Scam Behind a Iowa Newspaper’s Site, Two people who used to work at Meta found out why a small newspaper in Iowa, the Clayton County Register, was filling its website with strange articles about stocks. They discovered a bunch of websites using AI to create fake content.
Tony Eastin, who enjoys learning about the stock market in his free time, stumbled upon this issue when he was searching for information about a pharmaceutical company. He found an article on the Clayton County Register’s website through Google, but the article made no sense and didn’t have any useful info. It was clear to him something was wrong, especially since the website was supposed to be about a small area in Iowa but was posting irrelevant financial articles.
Eastin, who had a background in the US Air Force and had worked at Meta dealing with various online issues, decided to investigate further. He teamed up with Sandeep Abraham, a friend and former colleague with a history in Army intelligence and the National Security Agency, to get to the bottom of it.
Their investigation revealed an alarming AI scam, where AI technology is harnessed to craft fraudulent, clickbait websites designed to deceive both readers and advertisers. These sites frequently adopt the identities of established media outlets to gain credibility, a tactic referred to as “domain squatting.” The site that Eastin stumbled upon had exploited the reputable name of the Clayton County Register newspaper to disseminate misleading financial articles, showcasing a classic example of this AI scam.
Eastin and Abraham are worried that these tactics could be used for more harmful purposes, like spreading misinformation. They’ve published a report on their findings and plan to do more to highlight the problem, hoping to alert the public and lawmakers.
The original Clayton County Register, which started in 1926, was a respected local newspaper. However, after merging with another paper in 2020, its website domain somehow slipped from its control. Now, the site that once served the community is churning out financial news that seems to be generated by AI, complete with fake AI-generated images, as confirmed by experts in AI detection.
In the digital age, the emergence of AI scams highlights the urgent need for vigilance and stronger regulations to protect the integrity of information online. For further insights into the transformative impact of AI across various sectors, explore our detailed analysis at Power of Artificial Intelligence.
