This reliance on one’s peer group and social network is increasing the elderly’s vulnerability to fake news, said Assoc Prof Tandoc.
False information related to the COVID-19 pandemic is also a cause for concern. A 2020 survey by the National Centre for Infectious Diseases found that six in 10 Singaporeans have received fake COVID-19 news on social media, said the Media Literacy Council.
With people spending more time at home and more time online amid the pandemic, their exposure to online risks has increased, said the council in response to CNA's queries.
UNDERSTANDING THE INTERNET
Sarah’s father is not familiar with how algorithms work on social media platforms like Facebook, she said.
“He doesn’t realise that these things are confirming his beliefs. I’m not sure if it’s exacerbated his conservatism over the past few years,” she added.
“I think I’m concerned because it’s wrong, and these things (conservative pages) do push you subtly further right, and that’s not good to have as a father or a person,” she told CNA.
“I did try to get him to follow the more progressive Islamic leaders. But then I realised it didn’t work because when I scrolled through his Facebook again, it was still all these conservative news sites,” she told CNA.
“Then I realised that even though I followed them, he never clicks on them.”
There are studies that have found that most people are actually exposed to a diverse set of perspectives online, said Assoc Prof Tandoc.
“But what I think they're missing is ... I might be exposed to a diverse set of perspectives, but what I will remember or what I will obsess about is the one that confirms my pre-existing beliefs,” he added.
Having grown up in the era of social media, most young people understand how profit-oriented social media models work, said Prof Lim.
They understand that “generating eyeballs” plays a part in how content is generated and pushed to different users, she added.
Fake news, scams and extremist views being disseminated on the Internet are novel situations that are unprecedented for older generations, she added.
“Fake news has been around for centuries. But the way it is now being made so compelling, the way it’s now being shared so widely by virtually anyone – I think that’s unprecedented so that’s novel,” said Prof Lim.
Scams are also novel because they are presented in a sophisticated way with sites that look authentic, she added.
Extremist news sites are similar to fake news as they use “certain modes of framing” to win readers over with their credibility, she added. “Also the fact that they are being algorithmically pushed to you based on previously viewed content, that also is novel.”
“The elderly at the moment are really in quite uncharted waters so I think we can afford to be a bit more forgiving,” said Prof Lim.
“I don’t think any previous generation of elderly faced such a heavy concoction of different kinds of novel content packaged in very alluring ways that are clearly manipulable and that have the weight of big data and algorithmically driven push behind them.”
WHAT CAN BE DONE?
The SG Cyber Safe Seniors Programme was launched in June this year, aimed at reaching out to 50,000 seniors between 2021 and 2023 to raise their awareness of cybersecurity and encourage good cyber hygiene practices, said CSA in its statement.
The programme is “still in its early stages”, but CSA has “observed positive feedback” on the campaign. The agency did not provide figures on the take-up rate for the programme.
Since 2013, the Media Literacy Council has created resources like videos and information sheets to “provide guidance” on issues like online scams, data protection, digital footprints, sharing content responsibly and discerning false information.
It also works with the Singapore Digital Office under the Infocomm Media Development Authority to disseminate tips and resources to seniors.
“Being digital natives, we do see the younger generation guiding their older family members to use mobile phones and computers, and teaching them how to use social media platforms and popular apps such as messaging apps, online shopping apps and digital payment apps,” said CSA.
“In the same vein, they should also teach their older family members how to safeguard their personal or financial information online.”
“For parents it's a bit difficult to accept that your children or people much younger than you are correcting you, or telling you what you should or shouldn't do ... especially in a society like Singapore and in most parts of Asia,” said Assoc Prof Tandoc.
“Seniority is still very strong, and so that's why young people hesitate to correct, and also why older people feel a bit uncomfortable when they are corrected.”
When Sarah advised her father that he should research the information online, he became “quite defensive”, she said.
“I told him you need to Google it, you need to fact check first, this is all fake news. And then the next time, he just won’t listen to that advice,” she added.
She has also tried to speak to her father about his views and what he consumes online – usually when he sends articles or posts to her.
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2021-08-17 22:11:37Z
CBMiYmh0dHBzOi8vd3d3LmNoYW5uZWxuZXdzYXNpYS5jb20vc2luZ2Fwb3JlL2Zha2UtbmV3cy1zY2Ftcy1vbmxpbmUtZWxkZXJseS1pbnRlcm5ldC1mYWNlYm9vay0yMTA3MTQ20gEA
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