HISPI Project Cerebellum HISPI PROJECT CEREBELLUM

Social Media Algorithms Amplified Disinformation Campaign in Honduras Election

October 6, 2021

In October 2021, a network of over 317 fake Twitter accounts used AI-driven algorithms to amplify disinformation about the Honduran presidential election, targeting opposition candidate Xiomara Castro. The disinformation aimed at suppressing voter turnout and undermining the election's integrity by spreading false narratives. While social media platforms eventually removed the accounts, their initial inaction raised concerns about inadequate moderation and the need for responsible AI governance. This incident highlights the importance of safe and secure AI practices and serves as a reminder that incidents like this can be mapped to HISPI Project Cerebellum TAIM (Measure function) to better understand and prevent such harm. JOIN US to contribute to responsible AI governance.

For those interested in shaping the future of trustworthy AI, contributing to the Project Cerebellum AI incident database can provide valuable insights into cases like this one. By collaborating, we can help establish guardrails for AI and ensure safe and secure AI practices.

Matched TAIM controls

Suggested mapping from embedding similarity (not a formal assessment). Browse all TAIM controls

Alleged deployer
national-party-of-honduras-supporters, juan-orlando-hernandez-supporters, unknown-twitter-users, unknown-facebook-users
Alleged developer
x-(twitter), meta, facebook
Alleged harmed parties
xiomara-castro, libertad-y-refundacion-(libre)-supporters, honduran-electorate, honduras, democracy, electoral-integrity

Source

Data from the AI Incident Database (AIID). Cite this incident: https://incidentdatabase.ai/cite/846

Data source

Incident data is from the AI Incident Database (AIID).

When citing the database as a whole, please use:

McGregor, S. (2021) Preventing Repeated Real World AI Failures by Cataloging Incidents: The AI Incident Database. In Proceedings of the Thirty-Third Annual Conference on Innovative Applications of Artificial Intelligence (IAAI-21). Virtual Conference.

Pre-print on arXiv · Database snapshots & citation guide

We use weekly snapshots of the AIID for stable reference. For the official suggested citation of a specific incident, use the “Cite this incident” link on each incident page.