Nearly half of internet traffic is non-human, with bots making up one-third. On social media, 65% of these bots are malicious, spreading scams, misinformation, and harming brand reputations. In response to these statistics, the experts at AI prompt management toolย AIPRMย have provided theirย expert tips on how to detect a social media bot. Christoph C. Cemper, founder ofย AIPRMย also provides expert advice on the potential scams that they may utilise.
How to identify bots
Bots are often accompanied by a number of specific characteristics, and knowing these can make it easier to identify one. These are some of the key traits you may notice:
Bots have incomplete or unnatural profiles and typically have very generic or random usernames. Low-quality images or stock photos from the web, and incomplete profiles.
Poor language or grammar is a huge telling point. You will often find that many bot accounts use awkward language and have many grammatical and syntax errors, as well as poor translations.
You may find that bots regularly respond instantly to messages and have suspicious activity. Potentially posting on social media at uncommon hours, which can signify automation. As well as no โtypingโ indicator appearing, which is a key sign as bots do not need to type, they simply send.
Be aware of suspicious posting and engagement rates. As bots tend to post excessively in short periods, which tends to be uncommon in human accounts. Additionally, bot accounts often exhibit unnatural engagement rates, which may be low due to some of their followers also being bots or inactive accounts.
Suspicious and repetitive content has been spotted by experts. That Malicious bots tend to post the same or similar content across multiple accounts or platforms. Exhibiting repetitive tendencies, unnatural to that of a human account.
The above advice is key, although you may still have doubts as to whether you encountered a bot on social media, if so, there are bot detection tools online specifically designed to accurately identify the human from the non-human users.
Ethical concerns and threats posted by bots
As bots and the technology behind them continues to develop, many questions arise around privacy issues and safety.ย Privacy is a key issue around malicious bots, as they have the ability to collect large amounts of data, of which little is known on how this is stored and utilised.
Bots are known to spreadย misinformation and harmful content, which is whyย some regions are developing ways to govern bot usage, especially where they can influence public opinion. However, there are concerns and complications around this now more than ever, since Meta hasย abandoned the use of fact checkingย on its platforms, which is bound to have implications for regulating bots and the disinformation they spread.
Malicious bots can also be utilised to increaseย phishing attacks and spam. For instance, many phishing attacks rely on the scammer gaining the victimโs trust to some degree, a fake social media account and engagement canย aid in convincing victims that the scammer is trustworthy.
How to protect yourself against malicious bots
Always make sure that you exercise caution. Especially around unexpected and unwanted messages or posts that seem too good, or bad, to be true.
Be sure to report and block if you do come across a social media bot. Report it to the platform, and block the account to prevent future interactions or fake posts on your feed.
Use security features, of which social media platforms normally offer, in place to protect you as a user. Be sure to enable two-factor authentication, and take time to limit who can send you direct messages. In order to prevent unknown and potentially fake accounts messaging you. Review your security settings regularly to ensure this remains in place.
Views from the founder of AIPRM
Christoph C. Cemper, founder ofย AIPRMย provides expert comment on social media bot spam and scams, as well as the importance of staying vigilant:
โSocial media bots remain prevalent across many platforms, so staying vigilant is key, not only in preventing the spread of misinformation and harmful content, but also in avoiding scams.”
โAs mentioned, bots can help in creating phishing scams by gaining userโs trust and exploiting it for scammers. These scams can have serious implications for the victim, some of which include financial loss, identity theft, and the spread of malware.”
โUnfortunately, this is not the only security threat posed by bots. They can also damage brand reputations, especially for brands and businesses with popular social media profiles and high engagement rates. By associating a brand with fraudulent and unethical practices, bots can tarnish a brandโs reputation and reduce consumer loyalty. For example, they may share deals with fraudulent links with the intention of scamming consumers, which could ultimately undermine confidence in an otherwise trusted and respected brand.โ
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