Concern mounts over rumors on online platforms surrounding polls

The 12th National elections are approaching. Political temperature is rising as only a few months left to the polls. Centering the elections, political parties, activists, analysts, and a large section of society are seen active on the social media platforms as well as are participating in offline discussion. In such circumstance, experts are not ruling out the fear of creating anarchy in the country by using the online platforms at this important time.
They say that online platforms are the fastest growing source of rumors and have a deadly impact on the law and order situation in the country. Such a situation may also arise surrounding the upcoming national elections. So we have no choice but to be aware.
At present, the number of internet users in the country is 52.5 million which is 31.5 percent of the total population in the country. Every year the number of new internet users is increasing at the rate of 11.6 percent which amounts to 5.5 million. Bangladesh Institute of Pitch and Security Studies (BIPSS) has revealed a statistic that 99 percent of these internet users are connected to online platforms through mobile phones.
Similar information comes from one of the world's research organizations, Data Portal. They say that there are 66.9 million internet users in Bangladesh till January 2023 which is 38.9 percent of the total population in the country. At the same time, the number of social media users in the country is 44.7 million which is 26 percent of the country's total population. There are 179.9 million active mobile connections in the country which is equal to 104.6 percent of the total population.
A large number of people are connected to social media platforms using the internet where a large part of this crowd is not aware of verifying information. As a result, the possibility of any rumor spreading at any time is very high, said Zahid Arman, founder of country’s lone fact-checking organisation, BD Fact-check.
He said: "The general public of Bangladesh has very little knowledge about media. Because of which they believe anything they find online. Many people think that any information coming on Facebook means it is true. They do not verify its source. Even many educated people share information even if it is false because of political bias as this information matches with their ideology.”
Meanwhile, even though the population of the world is 7910 million, the number of mobile phone users are 8280 million. So, the number of active mobile phone users is more than the population. At the same time, the number of internet users is 4950 million worldwide where 4620 million people are connected with social media platforms. The rate of rumor spread through social media platforms is alarming. In Turkey, the rate of spreading rumors in the name of news is 49 percent which is the highest ever. In Mexico the rate is 43 percent, Brazil 35 percent, United States 31 percent, South Korea 30 percent, Spain 29 percent and Australia 25 percent. The BIPSS data revealed that there are many more countries in this list.
Noting that the rate of spreading rumors centering the upcoming elections in Bangladesh may increase alarmingly, Zaheed Arman said: "The trend of spreading fake news increases with elections ahead. Even before the last elections in 2018, several fake news were circulated in the name of political leaders. This activities will no doubt increase before this elections.”
CID Cyber Police Central Special Superintendent of Police Md Rezaul Masud said: “Rumors spread the fastest on the online platforms. These rumors are being spread by various political parties and individuals ahead of the upcoming elections. Fake news is being spread regarding the arrest of various party leaders. Apart from that, there are also rumors about US visa policy enforcement, US sanctions and the Palestinian-Israeli war. These are mainly being done to create social unrest.”
​However, the cyber security department of the police is ready to contain the law and order situation in the country. In this regard, Rezaul Masud said: "We are active to prevent rumors. Social media is being monitored regularly. Rumors are being countered. Legal action is being taken by identifying the pages or IDs from which rumors are being spread.”
Meanwhile, as it is not possible to prevent the spread of rumors with the Cyber Security Act, innocent people can also be in danger, said Barrister Mustasim Tanzir, a lawyer of the Supreme Court. He said: “It is not possible to conbat rumors by tackling all fake Facebook IDs which are running with a VPN. As a result, it is very likely that many innocent people will fall prey to this law in the name of curbing rumors.”
Many of the general public feel that freedom of speech in the media has been reduced to a great extent. That's why they can't broadcast all the news. As a result, these news can be found on social media platforms and it has become the belief of many people, said the lawyer.
He said: “Journalists have imposed self-censorship like others to avoid repression under the Cyber Security Act. In this situation, it is very logical and natural that people distrust the news media and tend to believe rumors spread on social media."
Meanwhile, sociologist and fellow of the University of Eastern Finland, Shahid Mallick advised people to check the correct information for the sake of security during this widespread spread of rumors. He said: "We have to verify any news before believing or sharing it. Remember, many people can create unstable situations by using social media platforms. We should not give them that opportunity as conscious people. At the same time the responsible person should ensure proper flow of news. So that the real news is not lost in the crowd of rumors.”