At one point in time, you might have received a dubious text message from someone you don't know. To stay safe against this suspicious scheme, we tend to question if it's misinformation or a scam.
Checkmate is here to help. This new service allows users to verify suspicious text messages, images, and online videos via a WhatsApp bot.
Introducing Checkmate: A New Tool to Combat Online Misinformation
Singaporeans are worried about the new scam that is circulating on WhatsApp. It's somewhat similar to the marketing surveys we see on Shopee and other platforms.
According to Must Share News via Yahoo! News, authorities first spotted this scheme on May 3 where scammers will invite the victims to join the survey. All they have to do is to complete the survey and after that, they will receive monetary incentives.
Thankfully, Checkmate has been launched to address this underlying security problem in the country.
Checkmate, supported by the Centre for Advanced Technologies in Online Safety (CATOS), offers a reliable solution for verifying the authenticity of suspicious content. CATOS aims to address online harms, including hate speech, misinformation, and deepfakes, with advanced technological solutions.
Read also: Scamshield App Scam: Singapore Warns People Who Buy Food Items Online Over Fake Shopping App
The Role of CATOS in Online Safety
CATOS, under the Ministry of Communications and Information's Online Trust and Safety Research Programme, is hosted by the Agency for Science, Technology and Research. The center focuses on developing and customizing tools to detect harmful content, ensuring a safer online environment for all users.
Significant Funding for a Critical Mission
CATOS will receive $50 million in funding over five years, as part of Singapore's Research, Innovation, and Enterprise 2025 Plan. This includes an additional $30 million from the National Research Foundation.
This funding will enable CATOS to expand its scope and provide a sandbox environment where developers can test solutions to online harms in real-world scenarios.
Scaling Up Checkmate
Launched in March 2023 by a group of volunteers, Checkmate utilizes natural language processing techniques, machine-learning algorithms, and human checkers to verify information.
According to the local news outlet The Strait Times, the developers aim to scale up the service, increase the number of volunteer checkers, and eventually register it as a non-profit organization. Automation through artificial intelligence is a future goal to enhance the efficiency of verifying content, particularly videos.
Apart from that, CATOS is also working on various other projects, including analysis engines that detect emotions like fear and anger, and hate speech in online content. These tools can potentially flag polarizing exchanges before they escalate, contributing to a safer digital space.
Official Launch and Future Collaborations
CATOS was officially launched at the inaugural Online Trust and Safety Forum held at The Ritz-Carlton, Millenia Singapore on May 15.
Communications and Information Minister Josephine Teo highlighted the center's importance in combatting online harm. The event also featured the signing of an agreement between CATOS and Adobe to explore content provenance technologies in Singapore, ensuring the authenticity of digital content.
"Our aim is to accelerate the growth of the online trust and safety ecosystem here in Singapore, through agile and timely collaboration, joint experimentation, and fine-tuning of solutions," Teo said.
Building a Safer Online Ecosystem
CATOS center director Yang Yinping emphasized the need for an ecosystem approach, working closely with partners from academia, industry, the public sector, and non-governmental organizations. This collaboration aims to develop advanced technological solutions that will help realize Singapore's vision for a safer online space for everyone.
No matter how advanced is Singapore when it comes to technology, there's no excuse to neglect even the smallest cases of scams in the country. The launch of Checkmate represents a significant step forward in the fight against online misinformation and harmful content.
With substantial funding and a collaborative approach, Singapore is leading the way in creating a safer digital environment.
Earlier this year, the Southeast Asian nation invested $20 million in its battle against deepfakes and online misinformation.
