AI could prove to be boon for checking false information and fake news on social media platforms

BENGALURU: Artificial intelligence could be used to check circulation of false information and fake videos about "child-lifters" on social media that lead to incidents of violence including lynching, software major Infosys co-founder Kris Gopalakrishnan today said.

It was humanly not possible for anyone to screen each and every post when about two billion people were using Facebook alone, he told reporters here.

He was replying to a question on how to contain incidents of violence including lynching of over a dozen people in different parts of the country in recent days.


Taking a serious view of the incidents, the government is planning to take the help of social media platforms like Facebook, Twitter and WhatsApp to check the circulation of false information and fake videos.



Gopalakrishnan also said society too had to take initiatives tocheck such incidents.

"It is a combination - On one side, we have to educate the consumers and on the other, the technology companies also will have to put in some filters, screens and things like that... We need to teach in schools, colleges," he said.

Gopalakrishnan emphasised that people must verify the source of the information before sharing it.

"Everybody has a role to play. Media hasa very big role...You need to also tell them that don't believein everything you get from social media," he said.

He also said such lynching incidents happen due to lack of implementation of laws and "differential" implementation of laws.