Facebook’s fake news fail

AUSTRALIAN Facebook users are being left open to abuse, impersonation and fake news with no way to defend themselves, experts warn, as the company is falling short of its promises to police the social media platform.

And governments need to introduce regulations, a dedi- cated ombudsman, and massive fines to stop the flood of fake news, they warn, as the multibillion-dollar company is not “financially motivated” to act against the scourge.

The warning came as more Australian celebrities were swept up in scams advertised on Facebook this week, and after the US Declaration of Independence was incorrectly classified as hate speech on the site despite promises to hire thousands more content moderators to prevent the issues.

In the most recent highprofile scam on Facebook, TV newsreader Deborah Knight had her likeness used in a fake news story advertised on the platform, falsely claiming she’d left Channel 9 to promote face cream. Three advertisements disguised as news stories appeared on Facebook for months despite reports and efforts to stop them.

Ms Knight’s case followed other examples of fake endorsements on Facebook involving Eddie McGuire, Lisa Wilkinson, Shelley Craft and Jessica Rowe.

A Facebook spokeswoman did not respond directly to the claims, but said the social network had made “recent improvements to combat impersonation”, including facial recognition.

Media law expert Roger Blow, of Cove Legal, said he was surprised Facebook did not remove the fake reports quickly, as it could not afford more “high-profile arguments” after the Cambridge Analytica data scandal and increased scrutiny from lawmakers across the world.

Mr Blow said Facebook was still falling short of its obligations to remove defamatory comments, fake news articles, and fake accounts impersonating other users. He said the average individual facing abuse, defamation or insult was left relatively defenceless.