Israel Internet Association (ISOC-IL) has released new online guides in Hebrew and Arabic to empower users against disinformation on social media. Developed in partnership with FakeReporter, these hands-on resources focus on simple, practical ways to detect fake profiles, bots, and coordinated campaigns without needing expert skills.
Manipulation, fake accounts, and deceptive content are now common across social media and digital platforms, particularly as AI‑generated material and digital propaganda grow more advanced. Users therefore need clear tools to assess whether what they encounter online is genuine. The guides are intended to strengthen the public’s ability to engage with online content in a more informed and confident way. Rather than seeking to turn users into professional investigators, they aim to help users recognize signs of inauthentic activity and respond appropriately, provide practical guidance on identifying and reporting fake or harmful content, including fake profiles, bots, coordinated disinformation efforts, and scams.
Key topics highlighted in the guides include recognizing inauthentic individual accounts. These often show suspicious identities, such as random usernames like “anna_48391”, no posting history, new accounts with intense activity, or profiles with few followers but many posts.
The guides also cover inauthentic behavior by groups of accounts. This includes irrational posting rates, like perfectly regular posting, instant replies, bursts of similar comments on non-viral content, or coordinated sharing patterns.
Red flags in the content itself are another focus. Style and tone can feel unnatural, with overly emotional language, “too perfect” text, illogical phrasing or language errors, excessive emojis, or a strange mix of very formal and slangy language.
Finally, the guides explain what users can do. Report suspicious accounts or content to the platform, FakeReporter, or ISOC-IL Internet Safety Hotline, especially when it appears harmful or coordinated.
This initiative was developed as part of the Disinformation Resilience Israel (DRI) project, led by ISOC-IL and supported by the European Union. A central focus of the project is developing educational campaigns and instructional media that build awareness and support informed media consumption. By creating accessible guides and videos, the project aims to equip the public to quickly detect disinformation and make more informed choices online.
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