|
NEW DELHI — The new Indian banknotes being printed following last year’s scrapping of most of the country’s cash will feature a breakthrough technology to help the fight against the country’s vast black economy. A “nano-GPS chip” will allow them to be tracked anywhere in the world — even underground.
At least they will according to a false WhatsApp message, which went viral following the country’s demonetisation last year.
The story was taken so seriously it was broadcast on television by Zee News, prompting the Reserve Bank of India to point out that such technology did not exist.
It was just one of dozens of false stories that were shared rapidly among WhatsApp users in India following the demonetisation, as citizens grappled with a set of banking rules that changed on an almost daily basis.
The spread of fake stories has become a matter of global concern, especially since a United States presidential election characterised by misinformation. Politicians, including former US president Barack Obama, have warned about the threat this poses for democracy, while Facebook is testing a fake-news filtering service ahead of crucial European elections this year.
But in India, fake news tends to spread through private WhatsApp networks rather than public social media pages, making it harder to track. Such rumours have been blamed for fuelling riots and communal violence.
WhatsApp has declined to comment. Ease of adoption and use has made India WhatsApp’s biggest market, with 160 million monthly active users, compared with 155 million for its owner, Facebook.
Only a phone number is required to use the service, and messages can be sent instantly to up to 256 people at a time. Employers use it for communicating with employees, teachers with students, friends with each other, and even government officials with journalists. But it also means news — both true and false — can spread fast.
“WhatsApp has become the most popular platform in India for sharing news — whether real or fake — because it is so easy to use,” said Mr Prabhakar Kumar, co-ordinator of CMS Medialab, which monitors media trends in India. “You don’t have to register or log in to use it. You simply have to have a smartphone and download the app.”
Other rumours that spread in the weeks following the demonetisation move included one that stated people would be able to open bank lockers only under supervision by a government official. Another said that people who could prove they were getting married would be allowed to withdraw far more money than anyone else.
“Demonetisation is a rare event that has affected everybody, so everybody wants to talk about it,” said Mr Kumar. “Because of the secrecy of the initial announcement and the fact that government policy is changing day to day, it is a very dynamic situation. People believe anything can happen at any time, which means fake news circulates even faster.”
However, it is not just the drama of the country’s monetary experiment that has fuelled false news stories.
In October, users passed around what appeared to be an unusually provocative tweet from then-US president Barack Obama, standing firmly on India’s side in a dispute with neighbouring Pakistan over Kashmir.
“I congratulate (Prime Minister) Narendra Modi and the Indian army for surgical strikes against Pakistan,” said Mr Obama according to the message, which had apparently been created using a digital editing tool.
“It is difficult to know what is true and what is not,” said Ms Ketki Mehta, one of those who received the message. “Messages get forwarded on straightaway, but no one knows where the story has come from.”
Just as elsewhere, Indian politicians have sounded warnings about fake news. The office of Mr Modi last year tweeted a warning about messages purportedly in his name. One recent example involved a story saying he had encouraged Indians to boycott Chinese fireworks before Diwali.
But unlike in many other countries, Indian police have taken action, arresting people they say have made up news stories, and even some of those responsible for the WhatsApp groups on which fake news is spread.
The authorities are particularly concerned about rumours that lead to communal violence, an act punishable by up to three years in prison.
In 2015, the police said WhatsApp messages had led to a man being lynched in Ahmedabad, Gujarat, and four beatings in nearby Gandhinagar.
Mohammed Akhlaq was murdered by a mob in his village house in Uttar Pradesh in 2015 after villagers said they had seen pictures on WhatsApp proving he had slaughtered a cow — a sacred animal for Hindus.
But it is not just violence that is worrying law-enforcement agencies. In November, the district magistrate in the city of Indore issued an order banning “objectionable” social media posts relating to demonetisation.
Such measures worry free-speech campaigners. “Fake news can be debunked without recourse to the law by government officials getting the truth out there on the news and social media,” said Mr Apar Gupta, a lawyer who co-founded India’s Internet Freedom Foundation. “It can be a laborious process, but it also helps foster trust in government itself.” FINANCIAL TIMES