Like all modern technologies, artificial intelligence and machine learning, too, have their disadvantages and risks. In the aftermath of the massive popularization of generative AI following the launches and successes of chatbots such as ChatGPT and Bard, there have been numerous other firms and independent contributors who have launched their editions of language models and AI protocols. From AI image generation to AI writing, tasks that seemed fairly complex just about half a decade ago have become an everyday phenomenon as we approach the mid-2020s. While this wave of automation has had its benefits, it’s also come with a major concern—disinformation. In the electronic era that has emerged in a post-truth world, the presence and dissemination of structured untruths have been a fairly prevalent phenomenon. However, the arrival of AI might just offer more propulsion to an already concerning problem that impacts just about every consumer of data and information, whether online or offline.
While phenomena such as hallucination and AI bias are already among the most concerning issues prevalent in current AI platforms, disinformation and propaganda are often ignored when one discusses the risks of artificial intelligence. Apart from rogue states, even non-state actors with ulterior motives might begin normalizing the use of AI for unethical purposes. Given that the production and dissemination of open-source AI has skyrocketed, there’s considerable availability of these technologies for free, and one can never be sure of the identities of individuals accessing them, regardless of the purpose. The upcoming sections traverse the murkier side of AI, taking into consideration key AI risks and disadvantages and the role AI can play in disinformation.
Risks of AI: Understanding AI Disinformation
The incidence of malicious artificially generated content has risen since the launch and popularization of chatbots and AI image generators.
Disinformation has existed since ancient times. Ruling establishments, militaries, and spies often doctored information to their advantage to either confuse adversaries or to hold onto power, depending on the application of manipulated data. Disinformation also continues into the contemporary era, albeit with a great many sources and an even higher number of individuals, establishments, and organizations putting it to use. The arrival of generative AI has already indicated that people might end up misusing it for ulterior motives, leading to a major shift in the way humans perceive information itself. Dispensations in power are no different, with authoritarian states often using AI to generate misleading data to sway public opinion in their favor. As AI-generated content becomes more prevalent, people are bound to come across disingenuous information and “facts” that invariably derail the efforts to bring about more open and unrestrained access to authentic data. This remains among the greatest risks brought about by AI, and despite regulatory practices slowly making an entry into the niche, controlling the use and deployment of artificial intelligence remains a highly convoluted exercise.
Besides the fact that disinformation can mislead people into believing patently false premises, it also tends to weaken public trust in authentic information. By raising the levels of suspicion among the broader populace, individuals will be remiss in trusting verifiable information due to the increasingly realistic AI-generated material as seen in the case of deep fakes. Easy access to AI image generation protocols such as Midjourney, Dall-E, and Stable Diffusion has already led to several photorealistic images that depict real-life individuals in dubious situations. While AI firms have been placing guardrails to prevent the use of AI technologies for such purposes, jailbreaking has been a rather common phenomenon, with numerous instances being reported since the launch of chatbots and AI image generators. Moreover, the unchallenged spread of AI disinformation will lead to generalized pandemonium and chaos over time, leading to curtailed freedom as well as tighter authoritarian control in vulnerable regions.
Mitigating AI Disinformation: Curbing AI’s Disadvantages
Curbing AI misuse with regulatory frameworks and accountability can prevent unmitigated spread of AI disinformation.
While AI might have its disadvantages and drawbacks, it is important to understand that AI is not the source of disinformation as a problem. Rather, artificial intelligence only exacerbates existing issues and acts as a potent catalyst to help ulterior actors actualize their interests. Whether it’s bias or faulty responses, AI only magnifies existing human errors or intrinsic deficiencies within its framework, which leads to larger issues. Since AI does not possess critical thought or judgment, humans often have to set parameters and instructions for their AI chatbots to follow based on the nature of the requests entered by the end user. While major AI development firms have worked extensively on safeguarding both the users and the algorithm from threats, extant practices and frameworks are still a work in progress. Moreover, as new vulnerabilities in AI safety are discovered, the task of protecting AI users and the underlying code becomes a more complicated task for developers.
Mitigating these AI risks and challenges is a long-term task, just as securing the internet has also been a constant challenge with perpetually evolving paradigms. While regulations can only do so much, AI itself could be useful in flagging content that’s of AI origin or factually dubious intent. This has already been put into practice with AI text detectors. Apart from making AI tools more robust in resisting misuse and reinforcing AI safety measures, AI development firms alongside government bodies must also play an active role in making AI literacy more accessible to people. While there has been considerable debate surrounding generative AI and copyright in recent times, legal institutions must work with the development community to bring in more accountability to identify and rectify AI misuse via centralized frameworks. Presently, a good portion of AI disinformation and misuse goes unpenalized due to the lack of accountability. Fixing this problem might just add a deterrent to potential abusers of AI.
The Outlook and Working around AI Risks
Understanding the risks from AI is a gradual process.
Since humans are still in the early stages of AI development, many of the drawbacks and disadvantages are often progressive discoveries that take considerable time to work around. While people have gradually become more aware of the concept of responsible AI and the prevailing risks associated with current natural language processing protocols, there remain significant deficiencies in flagging and denoting AI-generated content for the average user. Better methods in identifying, tagging, and preventing AI disinformation will become a prerequisite as deep fakes, misleading articles, and other multimedia content become more prevalent in global discourse. For now, institutions and firms can only remain watchful to prevent AI abuse alongside filtering malicious AI-generated content.
FAQs
1. How can AI be used to spread disinformation?
AI can help create malicious media, write factually incorrect material, and can also be used to orchestrate cyberattacks.
2. Why is disinformation an important disadvantage of AI?
The process of creating falsified data, realistic fake media, and automating the process of mass posting malicious information can be greatly simplified by AI. This makes AI a key aspect of the growing risks of authentic information in the current world. Preventing AI disinformation will involve mitigating all of these risks and aspects.
3. Can the risks of AI directly impact humans?
Yes, AI’s drawbacks have a direct impact on its users and the consumers of AI-generated content. False information and dubious media not only mislead individuals but also lower the level of trust in verifiable information and institutions.