The smartphone footage shows the two blood-soaked men pleading for their lives. Moments later they were dead, two more victims of lynchings sparked by rumours spread on Facebook and WhatsApp in India. The two men were young and well-educated. Gregarious, dreadlocked musician Nilotpal Das, 29, and his businessman friend Abhijeet Nath, 30, were both from Guwahati, capital of the northeastern state of Assam. On the fateful day last month when they were beaten to death by a crazed village mob wielding bamboo sticks, machetes, and rocks, the friends were driving back from a day in the country, near a popular waterfall. "He liked to listen to the sounds of nature to find inspiration for his music," his grieving father Gopal Chandra Das, 68, told AFP at their home, the television table in the living room now a shrine to his son. Viral rumours about kidnappers, spread through Facebook and WhatsApp, have led to the lynching deaths of some 20 people in the last two months in India, according to … [Read more...] about Death by ‘fake news’: social media-fuelled lynchings shock India
Spreading news through social media
Asian push to crack down on ‘fake news’ sparks alarm
Inflammatory stories masquerading as real news pose a particularly toxic threat in Asian countries with long-standing religious and ethnic divides, but promises by some regional leaders to tackle the problem carry equal menace. Borrowing from U.S. President Donald Trump's political playbook, government heads with an authoritarian streak are using the mantra of "fake news" to shield themselves from negative media coverage, and push legislation that critics say is aimed more at stifling dissent than punishing fabrication. The problem they profess to be addressing is a genuine one. Internet penetration is now so extensive - even in the poorest areas - that fake stories dressed up as fact can go viral on social media overnight and reach massive audiences with often dire consequences. In India last year, seven people were killed by a mob after a false story spread on WhatsApp that they were child-traffickers. A number of Asian leaders have tapped into the resulting public concern and … [Read more...] about Asian push to crack down on ‘fake news’ sparks alarm
Careless social media users allow online scams to flourish
Viet Nam News HÀ NỘI - Social media users are not being careful enough as Internet fraud gets increasingly sophisticated, the Hà Nội Public Security Department warned yesterday. The Hi-tech Crime Prevention (PC50) division of the capital city's police department unveiled yesterday the details of an online scam carried out by Nguyễn Tuấn Linh, a 29-year-old native of Thanh Hóa Province. Linh claimed on Facebook that he imports Chinese products and sells them at cheaper than market prices, tricking gullible customers into ordering products and paying for them via bank transfer. Within two months, Linh had defrauded five customers to the tune of around VNĐ180 million (US$8,100). Earlier this year, in April, the division discovered that Nguyễn Văn Hào, 23, resident of Vĩnh Phúc Province, used a website to get money from mobile phone users. Hào advertised on the website that if mobile phone users topped up their mobile phone accounts via the website, they would get 10 times more … [Read more...] about Careless social media users allow online scams to flourish
Social media companies step up battle against militant propaganda
Facebook, Google and Twitter are stepping up efforts to combat online propaganda and recruiting by Islamic militants, but the Internet companies are doing it quietly to avoid the perception that they are helping the authorities police the Web. On Friday, Facebook Inc said it took down a profile that the company believed belonged to San Bernardino shooter Tashfeen Malik, who with her husband is accused of killing 14 people in a mass shooting that the FBI is investigating as an "act of terrorism." Just a day earlier, the French prime minister and European Commission officials met separately with Facebook, Google, Twitter Inc and other companies to demand faster action on what the commission called "online terrorism incitement and hate speech." The Internet companies described their policies as straightforward: they ban certain types of content in accordance with their own terms of service, and require court orders to remove or block anything beyond that. Anyone can report, or flag, … [Read more...] about Social media companies step up battle against militant propaganda
Social News 20/11
Inspectorate checks implementation of laws by provincial heads Government inspectors will check the implementation of laws on citizen reception, complaints, denunciation and anti-corruption by the heads of six provinces. These provinces are Bac Ninh, Ninh Binh, Quang Nam, Kon Tum, Tay Ninh and Binh Thuan. The inspection was part of the Viet Nam Government Inspectorate's plan in 2016, recently approved by Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung. Under the plan, the government inspectors also examined compliance with regulations on the use of capital and property, as well as the restructuring of the Airports Corporation of Viet Nam. An inspection of the state management's work regarding dyke projects is also scheduled to be conducted at the agriculture and rural development ministry in 2016. VN Food Association's former chairman to be prosecuted Nguyen Hung Linh, former general director of Kien Giang Trade and Tourism Ltd., (KTT), and six others will face prosecution for causing KTT loss of more … [Read more...] about Social News 20/11