False Information as a Threat to Modern Society: A Systematic Review of False Information, Its Impact on Society, and Current Remedies

False information and by extension misinformation, disinformation and fake news are an ever-growing concern to modern democratic societies, which value the freedom of information alongside the right of the individual to express his or her opinions freely. This paper focuses on misinformation, with the aim to provide a collation of current research on the topic and a discussion of future research directions. It argues that a major current issue is the lack of reliable verified datasets and, by extension, the algorithmic learning models based on them. Through the understanding of different variations of false information, it has been possible to see the impact this absence is currently having on society. At the core is a focus on misinformation. A deeper investigation shows that artificial intelligence-based techniques are widely used to counter the effects and confusion caused by misinformation. Potential consequences of misinformation are being highlighted to allow insight into potential issues that may arise from this form of false information to highlight the severity of the issue and to demonstrate the growing need for reliable detection and prevention systems.

False Information in a Post Covid-19 World

The Covid-19 pandemic has greatly impacted the landscape of modern society. This holds implications when considering how false information may be used in a post Covid-19 world. When considering scenario that false information could affect such as medical information, vaccinations, and propaganda there is a clear need for deepened understanding and reaction as it happens, to combat potential catastrophic outcomes. Combining this with the stamping out of false information on social media platforms, as well as more traditional media outlets such as newspapers, reliable medical advice can be distributed in a concise and effective way being of great benefit to the wider public health. Understanding how false information could impact the post Covid-19 world through examining specific scenario and by extension the resulting impact, it is possible to prepare and potentially reduce the effect false information may have leading to a safer post Covid-19 society for all. In this chapter, we have highlighted different aspects of false information in the context of covid-19. © 2022, The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG.