Reporting

How “isolation challenge” videos on TikTok act as lures for online scams

Apr 29, 2026

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3 min read

How “isolation challenge” videos on TikTok act as lures for online scams

TikTok removed hundreds of videos pushing hoax reward schemes after Indicator reached out

Alexios Mantzarlis

Reporting

AI companion apps are a nonconsensual nightmare

Apr 23, 2026

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4 min read

AI companion apps are a nonconsensual nightmare

Apps with millions of downloads advertise as tools for impersonation – and there’s no obvious solution

Alexios Mantzarlis

Reporting

Inside a pro-Conservative influence operation on Community Notes

Apr 14, 2026

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10 min read

Inside a pro-Conservative influence operation on Community Notes

This group of X accounts tried to keep Tory tweets fact check-free

Alexios Mantzarlis

AI slop

This network of AI thirst traps repeatedly promoted a gambling website

Mar 25, 2026

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9 min read

This network of AI thirst traps repeatedly promoted a gambling website

But was it a paid promotion or something else altogether?

Alexios Mantzarlis

AI slop

Mar 9, 2026

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8 min read

A real doctor used a pseudonym to post viral health AI slop and sell books

Dr. Hakim Bahdo generated tens of millions of views and attracted millions of followers as "Dr. Kim Bado."

Craig Silverman

Reporting

How AI-Generated Influencers Exploit Celebrities to Sell Synthetic Nudes

Mar 4, 2026

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11 min read

How AI-Generated Influencers Exploit Celebrities to Sell Synthetic Nudes

AI personas posted fabricated photos with celebrities like The Rock, John Cena, and Cristiano Ronaldo to build followings on Instagram. Then they earned money with synthetic explicit content on Fanvue.

Craig Silverman

AI slop

This AI-generated podcast network publishes 11,000 episodes a day. It also ripped off media outlets

Feb 25, 2026

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13 min read

This AI-generated podcast network publishes 11,000 episodes a day. It also ripped off media outlets

Daily News Now tops search results for local news podcasts with AI content

Alexios Mantzarlis

AI labels

Fake verdicts, fake lawyers: How AI lawslop is flooding YouTube — and fooling viewers

Feb 19, 2026

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10 min read

Fake verdicts, fake lawyers: How AI lawslop is flooding YouTube — and fooling viewers

YouTube banned six channels and demonetized four others in response to Indicator’s reporting.

Craig Silverman

Reporting

San Francisco's city attorney sued the operators of 22 AI nudifiers. He wants others to step up, too.

Feb 11, 2026

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15 min read

San Francisco's city attorney sued the operators of 22 AI nudifiers. He wants others to step up, too.

David Chiu, San Francisco's top lawyer, speaks to Indicator

Alexios Mantzarlis

Reporting

AI-generated doctors are dispensing dubious health advice

Jan 26, 2026

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10 min read

AI-generated doctors are dispensing dubious health advice

Indicator identified more than two dozen social media accounts that feature synthetic doctors and medical professionals. They've racked up millions of views and engagements.

Craig Silverman

Reporting

Meta is *still* running thousands of ads for AI nudifiers

Jan 21, 2026

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10 min read

Meta is still running thousands of ads for AI nudifiers

But hey, at least some of them appear to be scams that can’t be used to undress

Alexios Mantzarlis

Content moderation

‘Digital desecrations’: when deepfakes are used to mock tragic deaths and what platforms should do about it

Jan 14, 2026

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13 min read

‘Digital desecrations’: when deepfakes are used to mock tragic deaths and what platforms should do about it

Synthetic videos of Renée Good are the latest form of technology-facilitated dehumanization

Alexios Mantzarlis

Fact-checking

Jan 7, 2026

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11 min read

An 18-month study found that fact-checking on Facebook reduced engagement with false info

It also identified weaknesses in Meta's fact-checking program, which faces an uncertain future outside the US

Alexios Mantzarlis

Fact-checking

How the Crabtree conspiracy theory played out on X’s Community Notes

Dec 22, 2025

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12 min read

How the Crabtree conspiracy theory played out on X’s Community Notes

A case study on crowdsourced fact-checking during breaking news events

Alexios Mantzarlis

AI slop

Elon Musk is this year’s King of Digital Deception

Dec 17, 2025

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26 min read

Elon Musk is this year’s King of Digital Deception

And some more serious findings – including a great reading list – from our survey of 53 experts

Alexios Mantzarlis

AI slop

Dec 15, 2025

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23 min read

35 notable AI fails from 2025

Just because it’s "intelligent" doesn’t mean it’s always right

Alexios Mantzarlis

Reporting

Nonconsensual nude generators had another banner year. What will it take to defeat them?

Dec 4, 2025

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24 min read

Nonconsensual nude generators had another banner year. What will it take to defeat them?

Deplatforming the companies, debilitating the technology, and deterring the users

Alexios Mantzarlis

Fact-checking

Dec 1, 2025

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10 min read

Community Notes: Big in Japan

Why are Japan’s amateur fact-checkers doing better on X?

Alexios Mantzarlis

Reporting

Thousands of undisclosed ads flooded TikTok to sell AI study apps

Nov 20, 2025

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15 min read

Thousands of undisclosed ads flooded TikTok to sell AI study apps

Maryland-based Mindgrasp used an army of student creators (and actors) to promote its study tools, without disclosing that they were paid.

Craig Silverman

Reporting

An AI bot is now the top contributor to Community Notes on X

Nov 18, 2025

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8 min read

An AI bot is now the top contributor to Community Notes on X

But synthetic contributors aren’t replacing humans – yet

Alexios Mantzarlis

Wikipedia

Grokipedia cites a Nazi forum and fringe conspiracy websites

Nov 13, 2025

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17 min read

Grokipedia cites a Nazi forum and fringe conspiracy websites

A site-wide comparison with Wikipedia sheds light on what Elon Musk is trying to do

Alexios Mantzarlis

Reporting

Scam ads are flooding social media. These former Meta staffers have a plan

Nov 6, 2025

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10 min read

Scam ads are flooding social media. These former Meta staffers have a plan

Rob Leathern and Rob Goldman, who both worked at Meta, are launching a new nonprofit that aims to add transparency to an increasingly opaque, scam-filled social media ecosystem.

Craig Silverman

Reporting

Taking an AI nudifier to court: A conversation with the lawyer suing ClothOff

Nov 3, 2025

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17 min read

Taking an AI nudifier to court: A conversation with the lawyer suing ClothOff

“They shouldn't be out there. They shouldn't be operating," said Shane Vogt, the lawyer for a teenage plaintiff

Alexios Mantzarlis

Reporting

101 TikTok accounts masquerading as real news spread misinformation to millions

Oct 15, 2025

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8 min read

101 TikTok accounts masquerading as real news spread misinformation to millions

Shallow impersonations of Telemundo, CNN, Fox News and other media got more than 200 million views posting fake ICE arrests and bombastic AI slop about geopolitics

Alexios Mantzarlis

Fact-checking

Oct 9, 2025

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9 min read

Community fact-checking on X survived Elon Musk. It may not survive AI.

A new working paper looks at the durability of Community Notes

Alexios Mantzarlis

Reporting

How “isolation challenge” videos on TikTok act as lures for online scams

AI companion apps are a nonconsensual nightmare

Inside a pro-Conservative influence operation on Community Notes

This network of AI thirst traps repeatedly promoted a gambling website

A real doctor used a pseudonym to post viral health AI slop and sell books

How AI-Generated Influencers Exploit Celebrities to Sell Synthetic Nudes

This AI-generated podcast network publishes 11,000 episodes a day. It also ripped off media outlets

Fake verdicts, fake lawyers: How AI lawslop is flooding YouTube — and fooling viewers

San Francisco's city attorney sued the operators of 22 AI nudifiers. He wants others to step up, too.

AI-generated doctors are dispensing dubious health advice

Meta is *still* running thousands of ads for AI nudifiers

‘Digital desecrations’: when deepfakes are used to mock tragic deaths and what platforms should do about it

An 18-month study found that fact-checking on Facebook reduced engagement with false info

How the Crabtree conspiracy theory played out on X’s Community Notes

Elon Musk is this year’s King of Digital Deception

35 notable AI fails from 2025

Nonconsensual nude generators had another banner year. What will it take to defeat them?

Community Notes: Big in Japan

Thousands of undisclosed ads flooded TikTok to sell AI study apps

An AI bot is now the top contributor to Community Notes on X

Grokipedia cites a Nazi forum and fringe conspiracy websites

Scam ads are flooding social media. These former Meta staffers have a plan

Taking an AI nudifier to court: A conversation with the lawyer suing ClothOff

101 TikTok accounts masquerading as real news spread misinformation to millions

Community fact-checking on X survived Elon Musk. It may not survive AI.

Meta is still running thousands of ads for AI nudifiers