In recent years, the nature of online "water armies" has drastically changed with the advancement of artificial intelligence. According to Liberation Daily, new data reveals that AI technology has reduced the cost of these operations to as low as one cent per message. A single individual can control up to 6,000 mobile phones, capable of posting over 4,000 harmful messages within just 48 hours.
During the Spring Festival film season, the movie "Operation Dragon" faced difficulties due to malicious low-scoring attacks by water armies, ultimately leading to its withdrawal. Similar situations occurred before the premiere of another film, "Nameless," with a surge of negative reviews appearing on social media platforms. In February, Xiaohongshu's governance team released data showing that over 1 million black and gray industry accounts were dealt with in the past three months. These incidents highlight the pervasive influence of online water armies, who masquerade as ordinary users to manipulate opinions and decisions through comments and posts.
Investigations reveal that water armies, previously reliant on manual operation, now leverage AI technology, creating a new industrial chain. This chain encompasses upstream activities like mass account registration and technical services, midstream account nurturing and anti-blocking measures, and downstream monetization strategies. The sheer volume of AI-generated false content is overwhelming online traffic, raising concerns about the ability to identify authentic information.
Reports indicate that to circumvent real-name registration restrictions, many individuals involved in black and gray industry practices employ account hoarding strategies. They acquire or rent mobile phones at low prices, modifying device parameters to disguise them and obtain more accounts for posting information. This situation is escalating, with account prices and acquisition channels becoming increasingly complex, involving second-hand trading platforms and social media.
Key Points:
🌐 AI technology has significantly reduced the cost and increased the volume of information dissemination by online water armies.
🎬 Spring Festival films have frequently been targeted by malicious rating attacks from water armies, causing difficulties for many productions.
📱 A new water army industrial chain is emerging, encompassing mass account registration, account nurturing, and information monetization.
