Redditors worldwide were appalled last week when they discovered that a team of researchers had released a cluster of AI-powered, human-impersonating bots on the “Change My View” subreddit.
The objective of the extensive experiment was to investigate the extent to which artificial intelligence can be persuasive.
The algorithms posted more than 1,700 comments, adopting personas such as abuse survivors or controversial identities like an anti-Black Lives Matter advocate.
The incident was a mini-nightmare for Reddit. Reddit’s brand is synonymous with authenticity, as it is a platform where genuine individuals convene to express their genuine viewpoints.
If the human-focused ecosystem is disrupted by AI garbage or becomes a place where individuals are unable to trust that they are receiving information from genuine humans, it could threaten more than just Reddit’s core identity.
Reddit’s profitability may be jeopardized by its current arrangement with OpenAI, which involves the sale of its content for training purposes.
The company lodged a complaint with the university that conducted the “improper and highly unethical experiment.”
However, that experiment was merely one of numerous examples of generative AI programs impersonating humans on Reddit for a variety of purposes, including scientific and political manipulation.
The company has discreetly announced an upcoming action to safeguard users from automated manipulation and “maintain the human element of Reddit.”
This action may be controversial with users who visit Reddit for an alternative reason: anonymity.
Reddit CEO Steve Huffman wrote in a post on Monday that the platform would begin collaborating with “a variety of third-party services” to confirm the humanity of users.
This is a substantial advancement for a platform that has historically necessitated minimal personal information from users in order to establish an account.
Huffman stated, “In order to maintain the human element of Reddit and to comply with the changing regulatory landscape, we will require additional information.”
“Specifically, we will require information regarding your human identity and, in certain regions, your age.” However, we are not interested in learning your name or identity.
A spokesperson for Reddit declined to provide an explanation as to the circumstances under which the company would necessitate that users undergo a verification process.
However, they did affirm that Reddit already implements measures to prevent the use of “bad” proxies.
The spokesperson also declined to provide additional information regarding the third-party services that the company would employ or the type of personally identifying information that users would be required to provide.
In the present day, a significant number of organizations depend on verification platforms such as Persona, Alloy, Stripe Identity, Plaid, and Footprint.
These platforms typically necessitate a government-issued ID to verify the individual’s age and humanity.
Then there is the more modern and speculative technology, such as Sam Altman’s Tools for Humanity and its eye-scanning “proof of human” device.
Opponents of ID checks contend that the sharing of personal information with social media platforms poses data privacy and security risks.
This is particularly true for a platform such as Reddit, where individuals submit experiences that they may not have shared if their names were associated with them.
It is not difficult to envision a scenario in which authorities could subpoena Reddit for the identity of an expectant adolescent who is inquiring about the experiences of r/women in states where abortion is currently illegal.
Consider the manner in which Meta disclosed confidential communications between a Nebraska woman and her 17-year-old daughter, in which the latter deliberated on terminating her pregnancy.
Meta’s assistance enabled law enforcement to obtain a search warrant, which led to the filing of felony accusations against both the mother and daughter.
Huffman underscored that “we never want to know your name or who you are,” which is precisely the risk that Reddit aims to mitigate by enlisting external firms to supply “the essential information and nothing else.”
He stated, “Anonymity is indispensable to Reddit.”
The CEO also stated that Reddit would remain “extremely protective of your personal information” and would continue to resist excessive or unreasonable demands from public or private authorities.
