Click check: social network urges users to find fakes
Jennifer Dudley-Nicholson |
One in three Australians blindly share information they find online without verifying it, a study has found, and many fail to remove it when they discover it is false.
The trend is helping to fuel a rising tide of online misinformation that is also boosted by convincing frauds created with artificial intelligence tools.
Tech giant TikTok revealed the findings from a survey into online misinformation on Friday alongside a public education campaign urging its users to pause before reacting to videos they watch online.
The warnings come one week after major tech firms revealed the extent of misinformation found on their platforms during 2025, including thousands of misleading ads, fake accounts and scam videos.
The TikTok survey of more than 1000 Australians found almost one in four regularly reacted to internet content without checking if it was true, and more than one in three shared information before verifying it.
One in four of those surveyed felt embarrassed, annoyed or frustrated after sharing false or misleading information online, but only 26 per cent of those caught out corrected or removed their posts.
The behaviour was helping to spread misinformation such as dangerous health claims, malicious scams and deepfakes, Cyber Safety Solutions founder and author Susan McLean said, and it was not easy to undo.
“The minute you’ve pressed send, you’ve lost control,” she told AAP.
“You might be able to recall the message, you might be able to take down your post … but it’s too late, it’s already out there.”
Misinformation had swelled online in the past year, Ms McLean said, as AI-generated photos and videos became more sophisticated and harder to identify, and as more users raced to be first to share content.
TikTok Australia will launch a campaign to encourage users to pause and consider content before sharing it, with a song called Catch, Check, Choose developed in consultation with the former police officer.
“All platforms have a responsibility to make sure the content being shared is as factually correct as possible,” she said.
“They also have a role to play in education, in trying to make sure that if someone is using their platform there is an avenue for them to see information about things they should be doing to make their experience safer.”
The campaign will launch one week after DIGI released its annual report into action taken under Australia’s voluntary disinformation and misinformation code.
It revealed LinkedIn blocked 933 misleading posts from Australia during the year, YouTube removed 889 videos due to misinformation, spam or scams, and TikTok expunged more than 127,000 ads due to misleading and false content.
AAP