While social media has certain benefits, the negative and exploitative use of social media by our youth and anti-Pakistan forces through misinformation and disinformation campaigns are seriously hampering the efforts of national cohesion.
Be it an aeroplane, a ship, a gun or a human tongue, losing control over anything results in disaster. The worst disaster we are facing nowadays is because of our lost control over social media, particularly in our society. All over the world, social media is used for bringing people closer and for updating and upgrading their knowledge and to increase interaction among those who think alike. It is because of the social media that a young man sitting in some far-flung area of Pakistan succeeds in approaching someone like Mark Zuckerberg, the CEO of Facebook or Elon Musk, the CEO of Twitter. There are countless examples of how effective use of social media, people have earned their livelihood via e-commerce platforms and other available resources.
In the field of research, studies, inventions, exploration and discoveries also, social media connections are playing a vital role. Unfortunately in Pakistan, our social media users could not understand the value and importance of this connectivity tool. Most of the social media users are even unaware of the benefits they could get from this modern connectivity platform. In their search for amusement, they even forget that like other fields of life, social media also has some rules and regulations to be followed by the users.
I remember a few months back, one of my friends really shocked me by sharing a very strange desire and demand of a college student at high school level. My friend teaches the subject of Computer Science at a government high school. Usually, the admission merit of Computer Science is higher than the other subjects, which is the reason why students with comparatively lower marks don’t succeed in getting admission to the subject of Computer Science. My friend told me that last year, on the second day of his new session class, a student eagerly asked him when was he going to teach photo and video editing. Most of our youngsters are misguided by the notion that computer literacy only means editing photos and movies, making TikTok and sharing reels. Our youngsters must try to understand that these petty things are just like appetizers or starters; the ocean ahead is very deep and full of precious stones.
Another field of interest which drags our Pakistani youth towards computer education is the art of hacking. Hacking in the field of computers means invading the privacy of others. Our youngsters seem eager to snatch the passwords of emails as well as of WhatsApp, Instagram and Twitter accounts of their friends and family members. At the next level, this desire of theirs is shifted into a desire of knowing their ATM and credit cards PIN (personal identification number). This all exposes the emerging trend of negativity in their nature and growing criminality in their temperaments. Every day, the cell phones, messenger and mobile bank accounts of so many people are being hacked and after hacking, the hackers start sending requests to the friends of the victim for financial help and support. In some cases, these hackers are found involved in blackmailing activities including the misuse of family pictures, private information and personal documents of the victim.
An even worse aspect of the misuse of social media in our society is emotional and sexual exploitation of innocent girls. According to various reports, there are countless organized criminal groups which betray, misguide and then exploit innocent girls particularly belonging to the middle and lower middle class families. Certainly, the responsibility of such malpractice falls on the shoulders of the parents too as they don’t keep a vigilant eye on their children’s activities on social media. Moreover, presently there is no safe way of blocking the unwanted material on social media, particularly for the college and university going students. Even people of older ages feel helpless in blocking obscene material on a very safe social media forum, Facebook, as there is no option of stopping intrusion and invasion of such material. In such an out-of-control atmosphere, how our youngsters, boys and girls could avoid all that mess and keep themselves safe from all that rubbish is no doubt a very valid question.
A daylight fact is that this world of us is getting computerized rapidly. From everyday cooking in the kitchen to teaching and learning in the classrooms, from playgrounds to space-travel and from war zones to the hospitals, the ever-increasing role of computers can no longer be ignored. Day by day, we all are becoming more computer dependent. Just think of your cell phones, credit and debit cards, bank transactions, payment invoices, identity cards, passports, posting and transfer orders, sale and purchase of properties, printing of newspapers, working of TV channels, music compositions, railway and air tickets; the list of computer-dependent activities seems never-ending. Though people blame this modern invention of widening the distances among people, the credit of increasing the connectivity among people also goes to this modern creation.
In our journey to computerization, social media is no doubt the most popular product. According to a survey report compiled by the Datareportal, there were about 71.70 million registered users of YouTube and 43.55 million registered users of Facebook in Pakistan till January 2022. The StatCounter had a slightly different story to tell the same year. It issued a report on the number of Pakistani social media users in December 2022, which indicated that out of total social media users, 84.85% used Facebook, 12.44% Twitter, 1.11% YouTube and 1.08% used Instagram. This popularity of the social media is no doubt casting a very negative impact on the print and electronic media. Almost two years ago, a survey report was issued by the Global Religious Futures (GRF) Pakistan project, which said only one in five Pakistanis were habitual of reading a newspaper; certainly that number would trickle down in 2023. The same must be the case of those who use electronic media for information purpose. Whatever the number game be, one thing is very much clear that the total number of social media users is far more than the total number of print and electronic media users. The easy availability of social media tools has also played a very important role in making social media popular. In such a situation where the number of social media users is increasing exponentially, the social media utilizers will have to be very much careful in checking the authenticity of the information they are passing on.
The authenticity of information being shared on social media is vital to ensure that people are getting accurate and reliable information, and not being deceived or misled. Misinformation and disinformation can have serious consequences, such as affecting public opinion, decision-making, and even national security. Hence, it is of extreme importance that social media users ensure the information they are consuming is authentic by employing various authenticating measures.
There are several ways that social media users can identify misinformation and disinformation. One way is to be critical of the source of information. Information from credible and reliable sources, such as reputable news organizations, is more likely to be accurate than information from unknown or unverified sources.
The authenticity of information being shared on social media is vital to ensure that people are getting accurate and reliable information, and not being deceived or misled. Misinformation and disinformation can have serious consequences, such as affecting public opinion, decision-making, and even national security.
Another way to identify misinformation and disinformation is to look for evidence to back up claims made in the information. If a claim seems too good to be true or if there is little evidence to support it, it is likely to be false or misleading. Additionally, checking multiple sources, and fact-checking information can also help identify misinformation.
Users can also use fact-checking tools and websites, such as FactCheck.org, Snopes.com, or Hoax-Slayer.com, to verify the accuracy of information. Social media platforms are also taking steps to combat misinformation, such as by flagging or removing false or misleading information, or providing users with additional context or information about a particular post or article.
Authenticity of information shared on social media is vital to maintain the trust of people in the information and organizations and also to prevent the spread of misinformation and disinformation. There are numerous ways through which misinformation and disinformation can harm a society and erode the public trust from its institutions. As the current age is rapidly digitizing, the propaganda tools have also sophisticated. Through social media, misinformation
and disinformation is being spread against adversaries, furthering the avenues of Hybrid Warfare.
Misinformation and disinformation are often used as tools to spread false or misleading information with the intent to deceive or manipulate the public. In the case of Pakistan, these tactics have been used to damage the reputation of the country and its military, and to create confusion and mistrust among the public.
One way that misinformation and disinformation have been used against Pakistan and its military is through the spread of false or misleading news stories. These stories may be fabricated, or they may take real events and present them in a distorted or misleading way. These false stories can be spread quickly through social media, and can be difficult to counter because they are often designed to be emotionally compelling and to appeal to people's biases and prejudices.
Another way that misinformation and disinformation have been used against Pakistan is through the manipulation of public opinion. This can be done by spreading false or misleading information through social media, or by using paid trolls or bots to amplify certain messages and drown out other voices.
It is important to note that these tactics are not only used against Pakistan, but also used globally by various actors, as it is an easy way to influence public opinion and decision-making. It is necessary to be vigilant and critically evaluate information, especially when it comes from unverified sources. If we seriously want to stop the misuse of social media, the unchecked inflow of disinformation and the flood of misinformation, we would require social media regulations besides public awareness campaigns.
The writer is the Principal of Government Alamdar Hussain Islamia Associate College, Multan.
E-mail: alisukhanver@hotmail.com
