Beware the fake online news destabilising the UK

On April Fool’s Day, we are all on high alert. We question every weird headline because we know people are trying to hoodwink us. But the days of fake news being limited to just one day a year are long gone. Today, scrolling through our feed means navigating a messy web of truths, half-truths, and straight-up lies every single day.

Social media plays a massive role in this growing confusion. Recent figures from the communications regulator OfCom reveal that 70% of adults are deeply worried about the spread of fake news online.

Regular users on TikTok, X, and Facebook frequently admit they struggle to tell what’s real and what’s fake. The problem is accelerating because around half of the UK population now gets their daily news from social media, with 34% relying heavily on local Facebook groups as their primary source of information.

Unlike traditional TV broadcasts or print media, these online forums are completely unregulated. There are no editors verifying the facts, and there are rarely any consequences for those peddling myths.

This isn’t just a case of people sharing different opinions, because healthy debate is vital for democracy. Instead, it is a wave of deliberate deception. Artificial Intelligence technology now allows creators to clone the face, voice, and movements of almost any public figure.

From Hollywood celebrities and sports personalities to politicians and world leaders, no one is immune. These deepfakes look and sound so hyper-realistic that they are incredibly difficult to spot. Experts warn they are being weaponised to stir up violent protests and community hatred, create harmful, non-consensual images of women, and radicalise young people using coordinated conspiracy theories.

The deception goes far deeper than bored internet trolls. Official reports delivered to Parliament show that foreign adversaries routinely deploy misinformation to weaken the UK from the inside.

In one striking example, when the Iranian regime shut down its own internet to crush pro-democracy protests, a massive wave of social media accounts pushing for Scottish independence suddenly fell completely silent. They weren’t real people at all. They were bots, which are automated accounts run by AI and banks of cheap phones, programmed to pump out divisive comments to destabilize the UK.

Similar tactics are currently being used to stir up anti-Muslim, anti-immigrant and anti-Jewish hatred. Fake accounts disguise themselves as ‘British patriots’ or ‘Gaza supporters’, but behind the screens is nothing but AI software designed to turn communities against each other.

With the line between fiction and reality blurring, we’re all being urged to pause and ask three simple questions before sharing any shocking online claims.

First, does this actually sound right? Second, is there real evidence attached? And third, can I verify this on a trusted news site?

Real journalism matters. You might not always agree with everything reported by local outlets like The Sentinel or BBC Radio Stoke, but you can trust that their stories are properly researched by actual journalists who are held accountable to regulators. They may not always get it right but when they don’t, they hold up their hands and say so.

For the sake of national security and our own digital awareness, remember the golden rule.

Next time you see a viral post online that feels a bit sketchy, trust your gut because it probably is fake.