Study Highlights Role of Social Media and Governments in Worsening Online Information Landscape

According to a study by the International Panel on the International Environment (IPIE), much of the information on the internet is because of social media owners, politicians and the government. The study talked about how many of the social media concerns are because of their owners as well as domestic government and politicians.

The co-founder of IPEI, Philip Howard, says that social media owners have a lot of influence on social networking platforms as they control content distribution and apply policies. This affects the quality of information on social networks. If they spread information unchecked, it can pose a great threat to the global information environment. The findings of this study were by academic researchers in the fields of computer science, social sciences and humanities.

The research didn't specify any social media platform owners but a co-author of the report stated that Elon Musk, the head of X, promotes his own posts on X. Recently, Frances Haugen, mentioned that Mark Zuckerberg, the owner of Meta, doesn't moderate non-English content as much as English content. TikTok can also be under pressure from the Chinese government as it is from a China based company, ByteDance. TikTok’s CEO says that the platform isn't an agent of some country and Meta says it reviews content in more than 70 languages. X hasn't said anything about itself.

The one-third of respondents who were surveyed said that they are expecting the information environment to become worse in the upcoming years. Politicians are also spreading theories and misinformation for their political gain. AI generated texts, voices, images and videos are also showing a negative effect for information spread. The researchers suggest that promoting a free and independent media and implementing digital literacy campaigns can help counter this problem.

Read next: 73% of Six-Figure Creative Professionals Prioritize Passion Over Profit, New Survey Finds
by Arooj Ahmed via Digital Information World

New Law Will Give Users One-Click Unsubscribe Option With Consent Before Automatic Subscription Renewals

A new law is giving users an option that they’ve been asking for years regarding subscription renewals.

It’s not an uncommon complaint to see users struggling to unsubscribe from any online service or software. This is why California’s state governor is going one step ahead to provide citizens with the chance to unsubscribe through a mere one-click cancellation step.

The law will come into play starting in July of next year. This will force companies to provide users with the simplest means to opt out of these subscriptions. Similarly, if users did sign up for any programs online, they can cancel this without calling toll-free numbers.

This unsubscribe or cancel option cannot be difficult to spot online under the latest law. It will be easy to identify and will come in the form of a direct link inside the customer’s profile location. Moreover, it will make use of terms like click or cancel.

In cases when a client wishes to cancel subscriptions on the phone, companies will be given the chance to discuss the impact or advantages of doing that cancellation. But in cases when a client does intend to cancel, firms need to oblige and stop delaying the client’s ability to do so.

The law does force companies to get affirmative consent before taking part in automated renewals of subscriptions or conversion from free to paid towards the trial ends.

Customers have discussed their fury with these kinds of automated subscriptions and how hard it is to end them when they no longer need them. The man who sponsored this new California bill says it does not make sense why users should suffer so much. If they can get into a subscription with a click of a button then they should be allowed to exit the same way.

One tech company that continues to be criticized for canceling the subscription policies is Adobe. As mentioned by the FTC, it’s under investigation and great scrutiny over cancellation policies. These entail a huge cancellation fee and force customers to call companies over the telephone.

When this ‘Click to Cancel’ law comes into play, it’s going to make things interesting. Remember, the FTC did propose a similar concept last year around the country, and for that, it’s still waiting to get acceptance or approval on that front.

Image: DIW-Aigen

Read next: Google Maps Will Warn Users About Fake Reviews When They Search For A Business
by Dr. Hura Anwar via Digital Information World

Google Maps Will Warn Users About Fake Reviews When They Search For A Business

Google Maps is on a mission to alert users whenever they come across fake reviews for any business.

The Tech giant issued a statement on this front including how it does realize how frustrating it can be to go to a venue and return disappointed. After all, many people do put so much blind trust in reviews.

Today, many users turn to Google Maps and check consumer reviews. Anyone highly praising a place is bound to be doing so to earn it more business. And if that means deceiving the masses, then so be it.

Hence, to put an end to this practice, the company is taking the step to highlight fake ones. Google is rolling out warnings for any business that might apply to this. After all, seeing a fake review is heartbreaking for obvious reasons.

Meanwhile, the Android maker is under fire as it is with the UK’s CMA who recently rolled out an investigation into how the company was handling fake reviews. There was a user of the X app who saw the change first on the X app which involved a UK-based firm.

For now, the tech giant is yet to comment on the subject in terms of where this feature would be available. But as per recent reports from media outlet Search Engine Roundtable, it’s updating the relevant support pages. This would be applied everywhere around the globe.

Google says it also will rollout possible limitations on businesses that violate the Fake Engagement law. One point worth mentioning is how business profiles will now feature warnings to alert customers to be aware that fake reviews about the company have been removed.

Other restrictions temporarily will entail not getting new ratings or having any kind of reviews. Similarly, they won’t be having any existing ones unpublished. If such actions do occur, business owners will get emails from Google and therefore will be allowed to appeal such decisions.

Remember, fake reviews might arise from a company that is only trying to get better ratings. But they do come at the cost of the customer who just wanted to have a nice time but ended up wasting money and effort on fake reviews.

On the other hand, Google says that any business reporting fake reviews may not get the same warning as others because they added more effort.

Image: Mike Blumenthal / X

Read next: Analysis Shows No Specific Type of Google Ads Bidding Strategy is Best and It All Depends on Your Performance
by Dr. Hura Anwar via Digital Information World

Analysis Shows No Specific Type of Google Ads Bidding Strategy is Best and It All Depends on Your Performance

A new Analysis by Optmyzr shows that there is no perfect way for Google bidding and most of its strategies rely on accurate conversion data, thoughtful execution and continuous testing. If someone wants to maximize their advertising performance on Google, it is important that they choose the right bidding strategies. But there are too many choices available that make the bidders confused and make it hard for them to choose one.

In the study, there were some questions analyzed. The first question was what type of bidding among smart, auto or manual was the best. It was found that there was no strategy that was better than the other. A success bidding strategy depends on its execution. Another question was if bidding strategies help improve campaign strategies. It all comes down to the conversion rates on your account.

If your account has reached 50 conversions in 30 days, your bidding can be effective no matter what the type you have chosen. Accounts that have more conversions perform better even if they use manual bidding. It is also important that you do budget adjustment as budget adjustments in Smart bidding require 2-3 weeks for the performance to stabilize.

It was also found that advertisers who use manual CPC have weaker CPA, conversion rates and CTR. If advertisers choose bidding strategy targets, it can hurt their performance and bids. All of these analyses were done after reviewing Google ads bidding strategies of 14,584 accounts that spent $2500 to $5 million per month.

Read next: Survey Shows What Creators Think of Using GenAI in Content Creation and If They Are Satisfied With It or Not
by Arooj Ahmed via Digital Information World

PayPal Allows US Merchants To Purchase, Hold, And Sell Crypto Through Business Accounts

Financial giant PayPal says it’s giving US merchants the chance to purchase, hold, and even go on selling crypto directly through the platform’s business accounts.

The firm also sheds light on how it allows business account holders to send and receive any related tokens from the crypto world to blockchain accounts. The news was announced through a post published via a press release on Wednesday.

The capabilities of these business accounts are in line with the 2020 announcement regarding consumers buying and selling currency via Venmo and PayPal accounts. So many business owners have expressed a desire for similar crypto to be available to the masses.

For now, the company says it’s so excited and eager to meet demands by rolling out such an offering. This empowers many to engage with digital currencies effortlessly. In 2020, we saw the company jump into the crypto business by enabling clients to hold and sell crypto as it hoped to better share how digital currencies play.

The shift towards digital currencies is unavoidable as it brings about clear advantages of financial inclusion and more access. Similarly, it can improve the speed and resilience of such payment systems. Last but not least, it could enable governments to disburse those funds to customers at a quick pace.

The company hopes to create a strong relationship with both banks as well as regulators all over the globe. The goal is to support more digital currencies as this can play an important role in the future of finance and commerce.

Remember, PayPal first rolled out the popular dollar stablecoin dubbed PayPal USD in August. It mentioned how the coin enables clients to fund purchases through this means by selecting the option for checkouts. Similarly, it would convert any of these currencies to PayPal USD when required.

In May, the organization explained how PayPal USD is present on Solana Blockchain. This was said to be the most used currency for transfers that offer PayPal USD and make stablecoin quicker and lower in cost. This would enable it to become quicker and lower in cost, giving rise to greater control as well as flexibility.

Image: DIW-Aigen

Read next: Survey Shows What Creators Think of Using GenAI in Content Creation and If They Are Satisfied With It or Not
by Dr. Hura Anwar via Digital Information World

Survey Shows What Creators Think of Using GenAI in Content Creation and If They Are Satisfied With It or Not

Generative AI has consumed every area of life ever since its release. It has also started redefining content creation and creativity. YouTube published a study to shed some light on how the global creator economy is using GenAI. The study can help content creators know how the trends of content creation are changing and how they can use GenAI and tech in their creative jobs to earn maximum.

The top thing most content creators are still not aware of is that GenAI has already become a part of their lives. This means that GenAI isn't coming, it's already here and has imposed itself on content creation. The survey by Radius found that 92% of the content creators are already using GenAI tools for content creation. It was also found that 74% of the respondents are aware of generative AI tools and know how to use them.

29% of the content creators say that they use generative AI tools to save their time. As trends are always changing and content creators need to evolve with trends and technology, GenAI can help simplify their tasks. A content creator said that it used to take them an hour to create a rough cut of a video. But now due to GenAI, this task takes no more than ten minutes.

89% of the respondents who were surveyed also believe that GenAI can help them with special effects production design and cinematography. 26% of creators say that the one of the top three reasons why they use GenAI tools is to create quality content. 87% of the content creators also believe that GenAI can help export their content to other countries around the world. They can build their global fanbase by using GenAI to translate, put captions and dubb their content.

Despite all of this, some content creators are confused about correct and ethical use of generative AI. 74% of content creators say that they want guidelines about posting GenAI content on social media and other video platforms. They are worried that it can be misused. But there is still optimistic approval about using GenAI and hopefully many content creators will use it in the best ways possible.

Image: DIW-Aigen

Read next: Millions Suspended! X’s First Report Under Musk Unveils Startling Changes and Policies!
by Arooj Ahmed via Digital Information World

Millions Suspended! X’s First Report Under Musk Unveils Startling Changes and Policies!

X has shared its first ever transparency report ever since Elon Musk took over the platform in October (2022). It is a 15-page Global Transparency Report which covers the first six months of 2024. The report showed that there were 224 million users reported and the platform suspended 5 million users. A total of 5 million posts were taken down between January and June 2024. In the past, X used to share its transparency report twice in a year. This practice started in 2012 and continued until X was handed over to its new owner.

When Elon Musk took over X, he ceased the transparency reports of the platform saying that it is like the government bullying social media by looking at its internal data through transparency reports. But now X has changed its policies. The report by X says that the policies of X are based on human rights and freedom of speech. X also says that they have a slogan which states “Freedom of Speech, not Freedom of Reach", which means that they can restrict the reach of their posts and make the content less discoverable instead of removing it.

This transparency report by X is far shorter than previous reports by X. It briefly mentions user reporting and company action, company policies and other policies regarding child safety, harrassment, suicide and self-harm. X didn’t explain rehabilitation policies and it seems like X is more focused on suspending accounts, instead of banning them.

The platform says that it has also restricted 2 million accounts with child abuse media with 370,588 reports. In 2022, X also updated its reinforcement guidelines to suspend users who also engaged in CSAM content with liking, replying, sharing and bookmarking the content.

The report also shared limited data on government data requests and removals. In its 2021 report, X said that it has fielded 11,460 requests for information for 67 countries with 40.2% of them. In 2024, X reported 72,000 requests for content removal and 18,000 requests for information. At the end of the report, it was said that X is rebuilding itself and its generative AI offerings pre-election. The report shows how Elon Musk is redefining the transparency report of the platform.

Read next:

• New Survey Shows Which Countries Are Most and Least Excited About Artificial Intelligence

• Survey Shows 55% People Are Using Generative AI Instead of Traditional Search Engines for their Queries

by Arooj Ahmed via Digital Information World