China sows disinformation on Hong Kong using porn accounts on Twitter • Hacker News Board

Re: China sows disinformation on Hong Kong using porn accounts on Twitter

#31

Post by wastedhours » Tue, Sep 03, 2019, 1:11 PM UTC

FreeHugs wrote: post #2

I don't understand it. So there are bots that have been posting "porn" for a bunch of years. And now they post political messages. How does that influence anybody? Who subscribes to porn bots? I would have thought only other porn bots follow porn bots? Can somebody link to an example of such a bot?

Not sure if it's 100% the case here, but a lot of bots respond to popular threads from legitimate people, either countering or supporting their position.

Less about the credibility of the account, and more about creating a lot of buzz or, well, counter-buzz around another thread.

Re: China sows disinformation on Hong Kong using porn accounts on Twitter

#32

Post by opencl » Tue, Sep 03, 2019, 1:12 PM UTC

FreeHugs wrote: post #2

I don't understand it. So there are bots that have been posting "porn" for a bunch of years. And now they post political messages. How does that influence anybody? Who subscribes to porn bots? I would have thought only other porn bots follow porn bots? Can somebody link to an example of such a bot?

Nobody has to subscribe to them, they just search for relevant terms and reply to anyone talking about the protests.

Re: China sows disinformation on Hong Kong using porn accounts on Twitter

#33

Post by SmellyGeekBoy » Tue, Sep 03, 2019, 1:12 PM UTC

ourmandave wrote: post #25

totaldude87 wrote: post #4

With all that happening in Hong Kong, i wonder why UK and US are not at all involved?

Flip it around and say the US Virgin Islands decided they wanted to be communist. Would China send troops or "advisors" to support them?

Bear in mind that Hong Kong was part of the UK until relatively recently.

I'm not a fan of our government at all, but I'm pleasantly surprised at how they've managed to stay out of this situation (publicly, at least).

Re: China sows disinformation on Hong Kong using porn accounts on Twitter

#34

Post by rgoulter » Tue, Sep 03, 2019, 1:12 PM UTC

FreeHugs wrote: post #2

I don't understand it. So there are bots that have been posting "porn" for a bunch of years. And now they post political messages. How does that influence anybody? Who subscribes to porn bots? I would have thought only other porn bots follow porn bots? Can somebody link to an example of such a bot?

"So there are bots that have been posting "porn" for a bunch of years. And now they post political messages."

The article says accounts like this can be purchased cheaply from resellers.

"How does that influence anybody?"

I think the most effective use is in replies to other tweets. All the replies to a tweet are shown if you look at a tweet. You might look at the profile of some user who makes a tweet, but perhaps won't take such a deep look at their profile to see the earlier porn tweets.

High number of tweets, high number of followers, long time on the site would indicate 'actual person' rather than bot, or so you'd think without scrolling down far enough to see it filled with spam posts.

Re: China sows disinformation on Hong Kong using porn accounts on Twitter

#35

Post by vectorEQ » Tue, Sep 03, 2019, 1:17 PM UTC

more alarming news is that people still let tweets form their opinion on public matters.

Re: China sows disinformation on Hong Kong using porn accounts on Twitter

#36

Post by sandworm101 » Tue, Sep 03, 2019, 1:23 PM UTC

alfromspace wrote: post #19

s_Hogg wrote: post #9

I've seen a few of these, they appear in the replies to threads created by BBC journos saying things like (in translation): "support the central government" These accounts were pretty perplexing until this article spelled out what should have been obvious to me.

Who's being convinced by statements like that?

>> Who's being convinced by statements like that?

CNN/MSNBC/Fox news. They are all looking for easy stories with numbers they can quote. Twitter provides that justification. I hear their talking heads say things like "X has been tweeted 10,000 times" as if that means anything. They rely on twitter because they don't do real reporting anymore. I'd bet good money they don't have anyone on staff fluent in the relevant languages. Twitter+Google translate has replaced all the actual reporters.

Re: China sows disinformation on Hong Kong using porn accounts on Twitter

#37

Post by Nasrudith » Tue, Sep 03, 2019, 1:25 PM UTC

FreeHugs wrote: post #2

I don't understand it. So there are bots that have been posting "porn" for a bunch of years. And now they post political messages. How does that influence anybody? Who subscribes to porn bots? I would have thought only other porn bots follow porn bots? Can somebody link to an example of such a bot?

Perhaps it is SEO algorithmic gaming to try to get it trending and it wasn't meant to influence in itself but make others more visible?

Re: China sows disinformation on Hong Kong using porn accounts on Twitter

#38

Post by mytailorisrich » Tue, Sep 03, 2019, 1:30 PM UTC

jswizzy wrote: post #8

totaldude87 wrote: post #4

With all that happening in Hong Kong, i wonder why UK and US are not at all involved?

The UK downsized their Navy so much that they cannot even keep their oil tankers safe from Iran.

Whatever the size of the Royal Navy, this isn't 1839 anymore and they wouldn't be able to send the gunboats, anyway...

China is simply a much bigger power than the UK these days (in fairness, as it should be).

Re: China sows disinformation on Hong Kong using porn accounts on Twitter

#39

Post by bouncycastle » Tue, Sep 03, 2019, 1:33 PM UTC

delecti wrote: post #24

alfromspace wrote: post #19

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Who's being convinced by statements like that?

It's not really an argument, but it could make people think they're more of an outlier in doubting the government. Once you doubt your convictions you might start to reconsider the arguments you've already been exposed to.

Indeed. This is known as "Gaslighting".

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gaslighting

Re: China sows disinformation on Hong Kong using porn accounts on Twitter

#40

Post by Nasrudith » Tue, Sep 03, 2019, 1:36 PM UTC

vectorEQ wrote: post #35

more alarming news is that people still let tweets form their opinion on public matters.

I must disagree slightly. It is a sensible let tweets influence opinion in the sense of "what do many think about it?". Also to some minute degree it shapes just from "normalization" as it turns "unheard of idea" to "commonly proposed idea". Said ideas could still be horrible and foolish but they get more attention but it isn't viewed as bizzare, horrible, and foolish anymore.

Of course people should also apply enough critical thinking to realize when the norm is utterly messed up, the masses are being a bunch of idiots or it starts to look very astroturfy.