Democracy under threat from AI-generated fake news and disinformation, warns South Korea’s Yoon
- South Korea’s president was addressing the third Summit for Democracy conference, an initiative of US President Joe Biden being hosted by Seoul
- Digital threats to democracy, and how technology can promote democracy and universal human rights, are expected to be high on the agenda
Speaking at the opening of the Summit for Democracy, Yoon said countries had a duty to share experiences and wisdom so that artificial intelligence and technology could be employed to promote democracy.
Technological disparity among countries is a major challenge, Yoon said, describing it as a root case of how some countries fall behind in economic prosperity and fail to make progress on democracy.
“Fake news and disinformation based on artificial intelligence and digital technology not only violates individual freedom and human rights but also threatens democratic systems,” Yoon said.
Digital threats to democracy, and how technology can promote democracy and universal human rights, are expected to be the main agenda of the three-day meetings.
“As authoritarian and repressive regimes deploy technologies to undermine democracy and human rights, we need to ensure that technology sustains and supports democratic values and norms,” US Secretary of State Antony Blinken told the summit.
Like-minded governments and their people are working together to promote free and fair elections, Blinken said, noting that safeguarding democracy was a collective effort.
Neither Blinken nor Yoon mentioned any countries or leaders by name.
The Kremlin has repeatedly denied accusations of spreading false or misleading information.
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Hours before the summit started, North Korea fired several short-range ballistic missiles into the sea for the first time in two months in its latest show of force.
The result means Putin, who rose to power in 1999, is set to start a new six-year term that will see him overtake Joseph Stalin and become Russia’s longest-serving leader in more than 200 years if he completes it.
The White House National Security Council criticised the elections, saying in a statement they were “obviously not free nor fair given how Mr. Putin has imprisoned political opponents and prevented others from running against him”.
Putin wins Russia election in landslide with no serious competition
The summit in South Korea is also being attended by British Deputy Prime Minister Oliver Dowden, who said democracy faced threats on multiple fronts, including cyberattackers disrupting campaigns, populists embracing falsehoods, and “autocrats holding sham elections”.
Speaking at a separate session, Blinken said Washington was releasing the first guidance of its kind for tech companies to help prevent attacks on human rights defenders online.
