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Tracing trust: Why we must build authenticity infrastructure that works for all
May 2020 TLDR: Coronavirus has dramatically increased the stakes for how we deal with issues of manipulated, fake and deceptive video and audio online, with governments, companies and publics responding to the need to discern truth from falsehood. One solution to misinformation and disinformation is to better track what is authentic, what is manipulated and […]
Sam Gregory
May 6, 2020
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The Pros and Cons of Facebook’s New Deepfakes Policy
Yesterday Facebook released its policy on enforcing against manipulated media, detailing how the company would respond to deepfakes, and to a lesser extent shallowfakes. On Wednesday 8 January 2020 the US Congress will hold another hearing on digital manipulation, following on from the first congressional hearing on deepfakes in June 2019. Over the past two years WITNESS has […]
Sam Gregory
January 7, 2020
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To Fight Deepfakes Build Media Literacy, Say African Activists
—December 23, 2019 In late November 2019, WITNESS led a workshop on deepfakes at the University of Pretoria, South Africa. Building on the success of a workshop in Brazil in July, and with another workshop in Malaysia scheduled for 2020, the event series has been a unique effort to engage academics, journalists, researchers and human rights activists […]
Corin Faife
December 23, 2019
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In Africa, Fear of State Violence Informs Deepfake Threat
Our deepfakes preparedness workshop in South Africa revealed that perceived threats from synthetic media vary greatly by region, especially where repressive government is a factor.
Corin Faife
December 9, 2019
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Combating Gender-Based Tech Violence: Groundviews, Sri Lanka
Part 1 of 2 Exactly a year ago, on 5th March 2018, we watched as flames engulfed Digana, in the heart of Kandy. We saw quiet, multi-ethnic suburban localities swept up by a wave of anti-Muslim wrath. On 6th March 2018, the Sri Lankan government responded by blocking access to Facebook, Whatsapp and Viber, on […]
Meghana Bahar
March 8, 2019
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Rio goes live
Image: Brazilian politicians livestreaming while campaigning and breaking a Marielle Franco sign. Current Rio governor on the right and a now-elected deputy breaking the sign. By Adriano Belisário As mobile phone access and Internet bandwidth increased in this decade, video streamings became an important part in the political dispute: such as in the beginning with […]
eric
February 22, 2019
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Harm Reduction for WhatsApp
Thanks to WITNESS’ Mozilla Fellow Gabriela Ivens for contributing the section on cloud backups and to all WITNESS partners and human rights defenders who have shared experiences of using WhatsApp that informed this article As we noted in our other WhatsApp focused blog post today, “Whats Up, WhatsApp?”, activists and journalists all over the world […]
Dia Kayyali
November 13, 2018
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What’s Up, WhatsApp?
We share some ideas for how WhatsApp can combat misinformation while preserving end-to-end encryption.
Dia Kayyali
November 13, 2018
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Last Month in Video: Cameras got smarter. Will we?
From Florida teens using video as a powerful advocacy tool, to Pakistan's High Court ruling on network shutdowns, to the supercharged technology behind "smart" cameras and facial recognition: this is Last Month in Video, February 2018 edition.
Dalila Mujagic
March 6, 2018
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Protect human rights defenders’ identities with the updated YouTube blurring feature
YouTube has released an updated blur feature—in under 4 minutes, you can learn how to use this tool as part of the steps you take to protect identity.
Dia Kayyali
October 31, 2017
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Vital Human Rights Evidence in Syria is Disappearing from YouTube
Thousands of videos showing human rights abuses in Syria, as well as the channels that feature these videos, are being removed by YouTube.
Dia Kayyali
August 30, 2017
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Mobile Filming Tools
Our recommended apps and equipment for filming video of human rights abuse.
Dalila Mujagic
August 11, 2017
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Set your phone to ProofMode
Why Proof? You see a wide pink sky and bushes in a relatively nondescript landscape. You hear an explosion in the background. The camera shakes as a man repeats, strangely calm, “Allahu akhbar.” A few seconds later, an explosion rocks the ground in front of the person filming, and the camera falls, sideways, to the […]
Dia Kayyali
April 27, 2017
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The NYPD Wants to Know Your Thoughts on Bodycams (Kind of)
Many police departments in the US, including the NYPD, are expanding their use of bodycams. But is this enough?
Morgan Hargrave
August 4, 2016
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Immersive Witnessing: From Empathy and Outrage to Action
There are challenges and opportunities in virtual reality, live and immersive media for social good. New WITNESS projects aim to channel this empathy into meaningful action.
Sam Gregory
August 2, 2016
