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IGF 2024 WS #90 Digital Safety: Tackling Disinformation in Future Internet

    Organizer 1: Judith Espinoza, World Economic Forum
    Organizer 2: Agustina Callegari, World Economic Forum

    Speaker 1: Julie Inman Grant, Government, Asia-Pacific Group
    Speaker 2: David Sullivan, Private Sector, Western European and Others Group (WEOG)
    Speaker 3: Agustina Callegari, Civil Society, Latin American and Caribbean Group (GRULAC)

    Moderator

    Judith Espinoza, Civil Society, Western European and Others Group (WEOG)

    Online Moderator

    Agustina Callegari, Civil Society, Latin American and Caribbean Group (GRULAC)

    Rapporteur

    Judith Espinoza, Civil Society, Western European and Others Group (WEOG)

    Format

    Roundtable
    Duration (minutes): 60
    Format description: A 60-minute, roundtable discussion will allow for an interactive dialogue that enhances the participants’ abilities to have a fruitful exchange of views and engage in meaningful conversation with both the speakers and each other. This will also enable the session to transition smoothly from the context setting speaker remarks in the first 30 minutes, onto the moderated exchange for the latter half of the session, seamlessly. The roundtable setting provides a more open and inclusive environment for ideas to flow.

    Policy Question(s)

    1. How can frontier technologies such as AR/XR and AI be weaponized for the spread of disinformation? 2. What policy gaps currently exist in tackling online disinformation? How does this affect digital safety? 3. What is the responsibility of online platforms to combat disinformation, especially in instances spanning multiple jurisdictions? 4. What steps are necessary for global action driven policy to combat disinformation? .

    What will participants gain from attending this session? This session will provide participants with practical frameworks, toolkits, and resources to create a safer digital ecosystem, based on the recent publications of the World Economic Forum’s Global Coalition For Digital Safety, Typology of Online Harms and Global Principles on Digital Safety: Translating International Human Rights for the Digital Context. Participants will also be armed with the latest policy developments in tackling disinformation.

    Description: Disinformation in digital spaces continues to pose significant challenges to the safety of users, developers, and society writ large. Frontier technologies such as AI and XR/VR environments may exacerbate this issue if not addressed and regulated properly. The World Economic Forum’s Global Coalition for Digital Safety will explore the key policy developments in digital safety to tackle disinformation and provide participants with resources and knowledge tools to engage in discourse on these thematic areas.  This workshop will allow for interactive discussion amongst participants to share regional insights and good practices for consumers, developers and decision makers based human rights-based principles for digital safety.

    Key Policy Questions


    1.   

    What risks should we consider arising from frontier technologies such as AR/XR and AI if they are weaponized for the spread of disinformation?


    2.   

    What policy gaps currently exist in tackling online disinformation? How does this affect digital safety? 


    3.   

    What challenges do online platforms face in combating disinformation, especially in instances spanning multiple jurisdictions?


    4.   

    What steps are necessary for global, action driven policy to combat disinformation?

    Cast

    In Person


    1.   

    Dr. Houda Alkhzaimi, Founder & Director of the Center for Cybersecurity, NYU Abu Dhabi


    2.   

    Monica Steffen Guise, Head of Public Policy for Integrity, Brazil


    3.   

    Dr. Madan Oberoi, Executive Director, Technology & Innovation, Interpol


    4.   

    Judith Espinoza, Governance Specialist, World Economic Forum (moderator)

    Online


    1.   

    Agustina Callegari, Lead Global Coalition of Digital Safety, World Economic Forum (online moderator)


    2.   

    David Sullivan, Executive Director Digital Trust & Safety Partnership


    3.   

    Dr. Saeed Aldheri, Director Center for Future Studies, Dubai University

    Expected Outcomes

    A summary of the discussion as well as insights gained will be used as the basis of a publication (Agenda Blog) authored by the World Economic Forum to highlight global stakeholder views on disinformation.

    Hybrid Format: 1. An online moderator will be present to ensure online attendees may fully participate and have their opinions be included in the discussion. An onsite organizer will act as rapporteur to fully integrate the views of both online and onsite attendees. 2. The organizer and moderators will all be tasked with monitoring the live zoom chat to address any questions from online attendees. The session will be well structured to receive interventions from online and onsite attendees in an alternating manner to allow for equitable representation from both groups. 3. PowerPoint and screen sharing will be used so both online and onsite attendees have access to the same materials while the session is ongoing as well as to ensure experiential parity in information shared.

    Key Takeaways (* deadline at the end of the session day)

    Disinformation is the spreading of false or misleading information with the intent to harm by bad actors and this must be differentiated from misinformation which is the spread of disinformation- but lacks the intention to harm.

    Platforms are combatting disinformation through extensive fact checking efforts via third party companies and tech such as AI to detect this as the volume of disinformation is humanly impossible to detect and stop.

    Policy and governance efforts to combat disinformation should be steady and ongoing- efforts to detect and monitor in cases of surges in disinformation in times of instability or political should be scaled.

    Call to Action (* deadline at the end of the session day)

    There is a strong need for user literacy to build critical reading of online content and materials.

    Platforms must be transparent about the challenges they face regarding disinformation and regulation should be consistent and strong to foster good online citizenship.