WhatsApp tests new image search tool against Fake News

In new update of WhatsApp, some measures against Fake News are coming around. That's because the company is studying the insertion of an image search option for comparison in order to determine if an image is real or not.

The company's measure is clear and urgent given the constant association of this phenomenon with the application. Which is coherent, given that in a society that is experiencing a post-truth crisis, one of the main symptoms of this new information and communication embolism is the evils of disinformation.

Massive and convincing, the news ends up spreading like water running through the fingers, generating currents of hysteria, a general aversion to the press and ends up hurting the credibility of large technology companies.

This is what happened, for example, with Facebook and WhatsApp. While the first has its ramifications and other crises, the second has become the pawn of groups with the sole purpose of alienating and provoking hate campaigns. Something that WhatsApp seeks to stop.

With the insertion of the tool, it will not only verify if each shared image is trustworthy, but also compare if any identical images are shared in the Google.

Fake News vs WhatsApp

The discovery of the new function was due to the BetaInfo, which can check the tool while digging into the 2.19.73 update. In it, there is the so-called “image search”, allowing you to send a received image directly to the Google to reveal “similar or the same” images on the web. With this information, you should be able to more accurately judge whether the image is real or fake news.

The feature is not yet available and there is no official word on when it will be. However, this would make another useful tool in the arsenal of WhatsApp against the spread of disinformation.

A India, for example, was particularly affected by the sharing of malicious messages, which led to the WhatsApp to enforce “anti-sharing” limits, in addition to forwarding alert notifications.

Adding a quick and easy reverse image search feature like this will also help stem the tide of fake news. And, at the same time, valuing the credibility of the information and its reputation in the meantime.

source: Engadget