- Robertson pleased to 'find a way' past England in tough Test baptism
- Martin sets lap record to secure German MotoGP pole
- 'Shattered' Germany set sights on World Cup after Euros exit
- Olympic hope Pedersen pulls out of Tour de France
- Djokovic eyes sweet 16 at Wimbledon as Swiatek takes on 'gangster'
- End beckons again for Ronaldo after Portugal Euros KO
- New Zealand edge England 16-15 in tense, brutal first Test
- Turkey take on Dutch in politically charged Euros quarter-final, England face Swiss
- Calling for better ties with West, Iran reformist wins presidency
- Cybercrime groups restructuring after major takedowns: experts
- Activists hail Sierra Leone child marriage ban, urge action on FGM
- Marsch relishing Canada's semi clash with Argentina
- Canada stun Venezuela on penalties to reach Copa semis
- Iran reformist Pezeshkian holds early lead in runoff vote
- Swiatek faces 'gangster' threat, Djokovic feels need for Wimbledon speed
- France holds its breath ahead of uncertain vote
- Starmer begins UK 'rebuild' after landslide election win
- Paris's Moulin Rouge inaugurates new windmill sails ahead of Olympics
- Pan, Rai share halfway lead in PGA John Deere Classic
- 'I was feeling terrible' in debate, Biden says in TV interview
- France coach Deschamps savours ending penalty hoodoo, defends Mbappe
- Thompson bids farewell to Warriors after exit
- Portugal exit Euros with pride, will return stronger: Martinez
- UK's new PM Starmer speaks to world leaders, names top team
- Spain and France to face off in Euros last four, Turkey lament 'unfair' Demiral ban
- Israel says negotiators to hold fresh Gaza truce talks next week
- France beat Portugal on penalties to reach Euro 2024 semi-finals
- Endrick to start for Brazil in Uruguay Copa clash: Dorival
- Heartbreak for Germany fans after dramatic Euros exit
- Beryl heads for Texas after causing damage, no deaths in Mexico
- Nagelsmann laments late penalty decision as hosts Germany exit Euros
- Biden declares he's all in ahead of high-risk TV interview
- Spain team 'is a winning horse', says De la Fuente
- Bows at the ready, Chad villagers battle kidnappings
- Alcaraz mimics Bellingham goal celebration after Wimbledon win
- Olmo hopes Pedri can make speedy return for Euros semi-finalists Spain
- Retiring Kroos hopeful despite Germany's 'bitter' Euros exit
- Southgate turns on English 'entitlement' over claims of easy Euros draw
- Merino extra-time goal sends Spain past Germany to Euro semis
- Koeman demands Dutch silence fervent Turkish fans at Euros
- Brad Pitt at Silverstone for filming of F1 movie
- Raducanu storms into Wimbledon last 16
- California fires spread in July 4 weekend heatwave
- Alcaraz wins five-set Wimbledon thriller as Gauff eases through
- Demiral Euros ban 'unfair' but Turkish pride will grow, says coach Montella
- Gauff overpowers qualifier to reach Wimbledon fourth round
- Vinales sets German MotoGP lap record as Marquez goes flying
- Hurricane Beryl causes havoc in Mexico
- Rwanda-backed rebels, DRC begin two-week 'humanitarian truce'
- Schar keen to show Swiss class against England at Euros
Bot-like accounts spreading 'hate' during UK election: NGO
Bot-like social media accounts have spread "disinformation and hate" in tens of thousands of posts viewed an estimated 150 million times during the UK general election campaign, a watchdog investigation revealed Tuesday.
Global Witness found 10 suspected bot profiles on X (formerly Twitter) have shared more than 60,000 messages containing conspiracy theories and violent hate speech, including Islamophobia, anti-Semitism, homophobia and transphobia, before Thursday's vote.
The NGO assessed that the accounts, which also promoted praise for Russian President Vladimir Putin, may have had "an oversize influence" given their prolific output.
Bot profiles are run by computers but have been programmed to look like human-run accounts.
The findings follow warnings that the integrity of key elections around the world this year could be threatened by rapid advancements in cyber-tech, particularly AI, and increasing friction between major nations.
UK Deputy Prime Minister Oliver Dowden warned on Sunday that hostile actors such as Russia were seeking to influence the country's democratic process after reports emerged of Facebook pages spreading identical pro-Kremlin talking points.
Ava Lee, campaign leader at Global Witness, urged X and other social media companies to "clean up their platforms and put our democracies before profit".
"Political discussion online is often toxic -- we all know that. But when we go on social media, we believe we're seeing what real people think," she said.
"When that's not true, when the conversation may have been influenced by someone who has paid for bots to spread division or to get a particular party into power, our democracy is in jeopardy."
- Overtly party political -
Global Witness researchers identified the sample of suspected bot accounts by searching for posts and hashtags on climate change and migration -- two hot button issues often subject to disinformation.
The team then identified and tracked at least 10 profiles pumping out scores or hundreds of posts daily on these issues in the weeks after the UK election date announcement on May 22.
Eight were overtly party political, clearly aligning themselves for or against a particular party by using its logos as their profile picture or regularly re-posting its content or hashtags, according to the NGO.
It did not find evidence that any UK party was paying for, using or promoting the bots as part of their campaigns.
The content shared by the suspect accounts was overwhelmingly extreme, Global Witness said.
"Some spread anti-Semitism and transphobia. Some state that climate change is a 'hoax', that vaccines have created a 'genocide'," it added.
One of the 10 profiles was recently deleted, but the other nine remained active as Global Witness released its findings.
It urged X -- known as Twitter until US billionaire Elon Musk bought the platform in 2022 and rebranded it the following year -- to investigate the accounts, which likely violate its own policies.
Global Witness also demanded X invest more in "protecting our democratic debate from manipulation".
X did not respond to requests for comment.
V.F.Barreira--PC