Craig Silverman
@craigsilverman.bsky.social
Cofounder of https://indicator.media, your essential guide to understanding and investigating digital deception. Sign up for free! Investigative journalist and OSINT trainer.
https://craigsilverman.ca
https://craigsilverman.ca
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Indicator
Indicator is your essential guide to understanding and investigating digital deception.
Indicator.media
I left my job at ProPublica about a month ago.
Here's why: I've teamed up with @mantzarlis.com to launch indicator.media, a new publication dedicated to exposing digital deception and to equipping professionals and the public with knowledge and skills to investigate it.
Sign up for free below!
Here's why: I've teamed up with @mantzarlis.com to launch indicator.media, a new publication dedicated to exposing digital deception and to equipping professionals and the public with knowledge and skills to investigate it.
Sign up for free below!
Incredible stuff on LinkedIn. Cofounder of AI notetaker says they told early customers that there's an "AI that'll join a meeting.” But it was really just him and cofounder joining & manually taking notes. No AI. Comments flame him. He posts reply trying to kind of walk it back. Overall: Total bait.
November 11, 2025 at 2:31 PM
Incredible stuff on LinkedIn. Cofounder of AI notetaker says they told early customers that there's an "AI that'll join a meeting.” But it was really just him and cofounder joining & manually taking notes. No AI. Comments flame him. He posts reply trying to kind of walk it back. Overall: Total bait.
Trump posted a screenshot of a totally false claim about Obama collecting gov royalties for use of the name "Obamacare" (lmao)
What's notable is the hoax came from a site + FB page network that I reported is earning big money from Meta's content monetization program: indicator.media/p/brakes-are...
What's notable is the hoax came from a site + FB page network that I reported is earning big money from Meta's content monetization program: indicator.media/p/brakes-are...
November 10, 2025 at 2:21 PM
Trump posted a screenshot of a totally false claim about Obama collecting gov royalties for use of the name "Obamacare" (lmao)
What's notable is the hoax came from a site + FB page network that I reported is earning big money from Meta's content monetization program: indicator.media/p/brakes-are...
What's notable is the hoax came from a site + FB page network that I reported is earning big money from Meta's content monetization program: indicator.media/p/brakes-are...
Interesting sponsored content from Meta in Canada
omg.
Meta clearly trying to polarize the issue of digital sovereignty by running this in the Hub.
Meta clearly trying to polarize the issue of digital sovereignty by running this in the Hub.
November 9, 2025 at 2:46 PM
Interesting sponsored content from Meta in Canada
For years, I’ve been obsessed with a number.
What’s the #? It’s the amount Meta earns per year from scam ads. Thanks to @jeffhorwitz.bsky.social, we know it: $16 billion.
Our free @indicator.media Briefing looks at what needs to happen now that we know the number: indicator.media/p/briefing-m...
What’s the #? It’s the amount Meta earns per year from scam ads. Thanks to @jeffhorwitz.bsky.social, we know it: $16 billion.
Our free @indicator.media Briefing looks at what needs to happen now that we know the number: indicator.media/p/briefing-m...
Briefing: Meta's multi-billion dollar scam ad business
Plus: Fox News falls for racist AI slop, and a tool for investigating Discord servers.
indicator.media
November 7, 2025 at 2:10 PM
For years, I’ve been obsessed with a number.
What’s the #? It’s the amount Meta earns per year from scam ads. Thanks to @jeffhorwitz.bsky.social, we know it: $16 billion.
Our free @indicator.media Briefing looks at what needs to happen now that we know the number: indicator.media/p/briefing-m...
What’s the #? It’s the amount Meta earns per year from scam ads. Thanks to @jeffhorwitz.bsky.social, we know it: $16 billion.
Our free @indicator.media Briefing looks at what needs to happen now that we know the number: indicator.media/p/briefing-m...
Reposted by Craig Silverman
This from @craigsilverman.bsky.social's story nails it. The companies generally do not like spam ads or need the revenue from them. They simply can't fight the spam effectively without adding friction that will result in “too much good revenue flushed out”. So they make it OUR problem.
#Regulation
#Regulation
Rob Leathern and Rob Goldman, who both worked at Meta, are launching a new nonprofit that aims to bring transparency to an increasingly opaque, scam-filled social media ecosystem. www.wired.com/story/scam-a...
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 bring transparency to an increasingly opaque, scam-filled social media ecosystem.
www.wired.com
November 6, 2025 at 11:55 AM
This from @craigsilverman.bsky.social's story nails it. The companies generally do not like spam ads or need the revenue from them. They simply can't fight the spam effectively without adding friction that will result in “too much good revenue flushed out”. So they make it OUR problem.
#Regulation
#Regulation
Reposted by Craig Silverman
Today on @indicator.media: I speak to the lawyer representing the New Jersey teen suing AI nudifier ClothOff.
We spoke about the broad coalition of lawyers fighting to shut down these tools of online abuse, the difficulty of getting their owners served, and the claims his client is pursuing.
We spoke about the broad coalition of lawyers fighting to shut down these tools of online abuse, the difficulty of getting their owners served, and the claims his client is pursuing.
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
indicator.media
November 3, 2025 at 1:10 PM
Today on @indicator.media: I speak to the lawyer representing the New Jersey teen suing AI nudifier ClothOff.
We spoke about the broad coalition of lawyers fighting to shut down these tools of online abuse, the difficulty of getting their owners served, and the claims his client is pursuing.
We spoke about the broad coalition of lawyers fighting to shut down these tools of online abuse, the difficulty of getting their owners served, and the claims his client is pursuing.
"The question is whether Grokipedia can succeed not as an alternative to Wikipedia but as a means to delegitimize it. 'Flooding the zone with shit' ... doesn’t necessarily seek to replace institutions of collective knowledge generation; it seeks to deface them."
indicator.media/p/grokipedia...
indicator.media/p/grokipedia...
Briefing: Grokipedia applies a right-wing filter to Wikipedia
Plus: an easy way to search for objects within a video and a new web reconnaissance tool
indicator.media
November 3, 2025 at 12:29 AM
"The question is whether Grokipedia can succeed not as an alternative to Wikipedia but as a means to delegitimize it. 'Flooding the zone with shit' ... doesn’t necessarily seek to replace institutions of collective knowledge generation; it seeks to deface them."
indicator.media/p/grokipedia...
indicator.media/p/grokipedia...
Reposted by Craig Silverman
Two weeks ago, I identified a TikTok sympathy scam using racial slurs and false claims of “handmade” products from “family-owned” businesses. Thanks to @craigsilverman.bsky.social, nearly 200 connected scam accounts have since been removed.
indicator.media/p/tiktok-sym...
indicator.media/p/tiktok-sym...
October 30, 2025 at 5:30 PM
Two weeks ago, I identified a TikTok sympathy scam using racial slurs and false claims of “handmade” products from “family-owned” businesses. Thanks to @craigsilverman.bsky.social, nearly 200 connected scam accounts have since been removed.
indicator.media/p/tiktok-sym...
indicator.media/p/tiktok-sym...
Sympathy scams have proliferated across platforms this year, especially TikTok. I looked at the latest iteration, which uses fabricated racial slurs & insults to bait people into buying cheap products. We IDd ~200 TikTok accounts w/ millions of views:
TikTok sympathy scams use racial slurs and insults to sell products
TikTok removed close to 200 accounts after Indicator reached out
indicator.media
October 30, 2025 at 2:44 PM
Sympathy scams have proliferated across platforms this year, especially TikTok. I looked at the latest iteration, which uses fabricated racial slurs & insults to bait people into buying cheap products. We IDd ~200 TikTok accounts w/ millions of views:
This is tomorrow night and tickets are free!
Join us tomorrow for The New Age of Digital Deception, a CJF J-Talk with @mediasmarts.bsky.social featuring investigative journalists @craigsilverman.bsky.social and Carolyn Jarvis on how to spot manipulation and defend yourself online. 🎟️ www.eventbrite.ca/e/the-new-ag... #DigitalCitizenDay /2
The New Age of Digital Deception: What's Changed and How to Fight Back
A CJF J-Talks event in partnership with MediaSmarts for Media Literacy Week 2025
www.eventbrite.ca
October 28, 2025 at 7:00 PM
This is tomorrow night and tickets are free!
Reposted by Craig Silverman
Not all misinformation requires sophisticated tech or AI.
For @craigsilverman.bsky.social's @indicator.media, I deep-dived into these accounts generated millions of views—and potentially handsome profits—with a little clever editing and an understanding of how strong emotions drive clicks.
For @craigsilverman.bsky.social's @indicator.media, I deep-dived into these accounts generated millions of views—and potentially handsome profits—with a little clever editing and an understanding of how strong emotions drive clicks.
We published an investigation from @kcinbk.bsky.social
into YouTube vids that falsely claim to show police racially profiling and arresting a person that turns out to to be an FBI agent. They've earned over 300 million views.
In response, YouTube banned 13 channels: indicator.media/p/youtube-co...
into YouTube vids that falsely claim to show police racially profiling and arresting a person that turns out to to be an FBI agent. They've earned over 300 million views.
In response, YouTube banned 13 channels: indicator.media/p/youtube-co...
Rage-baiting YouTube videos falsely claim to expose police for arresting FBI agents
Indicator identified 55 false or misleading cop comeuppance that generated hundreds of millions of views. In response, YouTube removed 13 channels
indicator.media
October 27, 2025 at 4:50 PM
Not all misinformation requires sophisticated tech or AI.
For @craigsilverman.bsky.social's @indicator.media, I deep-dived into these accounts generated millions of views—and potentially handsome profits—with a little clever editing and an understanding of how strong emotions drive clicks.
For @craigsilverman.bsky.social's @indicator.media, I deep-dived into these accounts generated millions of views—and potentially handsome profits—with a little clever editing and an understanding of how strong emotions drive clicks.
We published an investigation from @kcinbk.bsky.social
into YouTube vids that falsely claim to show police racially profiling and arresting a person that turns out to to be an FBI agent. They've earned over 300 million views.
In response, YouTube banned 13 channels: indicator.media/p/youtube-co...
into YouTube vids that falsely claim to show police racially profiling and arresting a person that turns out to to be an FBI agent. They've earned over 300 million views.
In response, YouTube banned 13 channels: indicator.media/p/youtube-co...
Rage-baiting YouTube videos falsely claim to expose police for arresting FBI agents
Indicator identified 55 false or misleading cop comeuppance that generated hundreds of millions of views. In response, YouTube removed 13 channels
indicator.media
October 27, 2025 at 3:40 PM
We published an investigation from @kcinbk.bsky.social
into YouTube vids that falsely claim to show police racially profiling and arresting a person that turns out to to be an FBI agent. They've earned over 300 million views.
In response, YouTube banned 13 channels: indicator.media/p/youtube-co...
into YouTube vids that falsely claim to show police racially profiling and arresting a person that turns out to to be an FBI agent. They've earned over 300 million views.
In response, YouTube banned 13 channels: indicator.media/p/youtube-co...
A few OSINT tips in our new, free Briefing :
📍 How to set up a free, private AI system
📍 What the new Tools of War database can help you find
📍How to identify an X profile w/ the new "About this account" info panel
Subscribe to get it every Friday:
📍 How to set up a free, private AI system
📍 What the new Tools of War database can help you find
📍How to identify an X profile w/ the new "About this account" info panel
Subscribe to get it every Friday:
Briefing: People are posting fake images of an X feature that hasn't launched yet
Plus: how to create a free, private AI setup
indicator.media
October 24, 2025 at 8:28 PM
A few OSINT tips in our new, free Briefing :
📍 How to set up a free, private AI system
📍 What the new Tools of War database can help you find
📍How to identify an X profile w/ the new "About this account" info panel
Subscribe to get it every Friday:
📍 How to set up a free, private AI system
📍 What the new Tools of War database can help you find
📍How to identify an X profile w/ the new "About this account" info panel
Subscribe to get it every Friday:
Come celebrate Media Literacy Week with me in Toronto!
DON’T MISS! The New Age of Digital Deception, featuring @craigsilverman.bsky.social & Carolyn Jarvis, a CJF J-Talk event in partnership with @mediasmarts.bsky.social for #MediaLiteracyWeek 2025. Tickets are free and include popcorn + drink + audience Q&A 🎟️ www.eventbrite.ca/e/the-new-ag...
October 24, 2025 at 6:42 PM
Come celebrate Media Literacy Week with me in Toronto!
Reposted by Craig Silverman
Today on @indicator.media: A first-of-its-kind audit of AI labels on major social platforms.
Tech platforms promised to label AI content. They're not delivering.
An Indicator audit of hundreds of synthetic images and videos reveals that platforms frequently fail to label AI content
indicator.media
October 23, 2025 at 12:45 PM
Today on @indicator.media: A first-of-its-kind audit of AI labels on major social platforms.
If you're in Toronto on Oct 29, I'm doing a free talk & discussion at the Hot Docs Ted Rogers Cinema, "The New Age of Digital Deception: What's Changed and How to Fight Back."
It's presented by the Canadian Journalism Foundation and MediaSmarts:
It's presented by the Canadian Journalism Foundation and MediaSmarts:
The New Age of Digital Deception: What's Changed and How to Fight Back
A CJF J-Talks event in partnership with MediaSmarts for Media Literacy Week 2025
www.eventbrite.ca
October 22, 2025 at 4:03 PM
If you're in Toronto on Oct 29, I'm doing a free talk & discussion at the Hot Docs Ted Rogers Cinema, "The New Age of Digital Deception: What's Changed and How to Fight Back."
It's presented by the Canadian Journalism Foundation and MediaSmarts:
It's presented by the Canadian Journalism Foundation and MediaSmarts:
Absolutely fantastic photo for this Globe And Mail story www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/alber...
October 20, 2025 at 5:44 AM
Absolutely fantastic photo for this Globe And Mail story www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/alber...
The latest about OSINT & digital deception:
📍X may add info to profiles that can help w/ verification
📍A new WordPress Finder Bookmarklet was inspired by our guide to investigating WP sites
📍Research shows it's easy to "poison" a LLM
Read for free:
📍X may add info to profiles that can help w/ verification
📍A new WordPress Finder Bookmarklet was inspired by our guide to investigating WP sites
📍Research shows it's easy to "poison" a LLM
Read for free:
Briefing: X tests new way to fight inauthentic activity and a major scam takedown
Plus: a new free OSINT bookmarklet that helps you investigate WordPress sites
indicator.media
October 17, 2025 at 2:41 PM
The latest about OSINT & digital deception:
📍X may add info to profiles that can help w/ verification
📍A new WordPress Finder Bookmarklet was inspired by our guide to investigating WP sites
📍Research shows it's easy to "poison" a LLM
Read for free:
📍X may add info to profiles that can help w/ verification
📍A new WordPress Finder Bookmarklet was inspired by our guide to investigating WP sites
📍Research shows it's easy to "poison" a LLM
Read for free:
We love our members and it’s gratifying to know that people in different fields see value in what we’re doing at @indicator.media
I'm so proud that @indicator.media can serve a wide range of members: investigators, journalists, non profit leaders, researchers and tech workers.
@craigsilverman.bsky.social and I wanted Indicator to be a resource for people who give a s**t about our online spaces.
Turns out, a lot of people do.
@craigsilverman.bsky.social and I wanted Indicator to be a resource for people who give a s**t about our online spaces.
Turns out, a lot of people do.
October 15, 2025 at 2:55 PM
We love our members and it’s gratifying to know that people in different fields see value in what we’re doing at @indicator.media
Reposted by Craig Silverman
NEW on @indicator.media:
I found 101 accounts impersonating Telemundo, Televisa, CNN and other media outlets spreading clickbaity falsehoods to millions on TikTok.
The company took them all down after I reached out.
I found 101 accounts impersonating Telemundo, Televisa, CNN and other media outlets spreading clickbaity falsehoods to millions on TikTok.
The company took them all down after I reached out.
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
indicator.media
October 15, 2025 at 12:38 PM
NEW on @indicator.media:
I found 101 accounts impersonating Telemundo, Televisa, CNN and other media outlets spreading clickbaity falsehoods to millions on TikTok.
The company took them all down after I reached out.
I found 101 accounts impersonating Telemundo, Televisa, CNN and other media outlets spreading clickbaity falsehoods to millions on TikTok.
The company took them all down after I reached out.
Latest edition of our Indicator Briefing looks at:
📍Could YouTube bring Alex Jones back?
📍The latest in Sora manipulation
📍OSINT tools for tracing sketchy ships, viewing JSON files
Free to subscribe and to read:
📍Could YouTube bring Alex Jones back?
📍The latest in Sora manipulation
📍OSINT tools for tracing sketchy ships, viewing JSON files
Free to subscribe and to read:
Briefing: YouTube gives banned channels a second chance
Plus: tools for tracking sketchy ships, viewing JSON files, and more
indicator.media
October 10, 2025 at 12:15 PM
Latest edition of our Indicator Briefing looks at:
📍Could YouTube bring Alex Jones back?
📍The latest in Sora manipulation
📍OSINT tools for tracing sketchy ships, viewing JSON files
Free to subscribe and to read:
📍Could YouTube bring Alex Jones back?
📍The latest in Sora manipulation
📍OSINT tools for tracing sketchy ships, viewing JSON files
Free to subscribe and to read:
Reposted by Craig Silverman
Today on Indicator: Is the community behind X's Community Notes cooked?
Community fact-checking on X survived Elon Musk. It may not survive AI.
A new working paper looks at the durability of Community Notes
indicator.media
October 9, 2025 at 1:30 PM
Today on Indicator: Is the community behind X's Community Notes cooked?
There are lots of ways to make money on social networks, but creators are increasingly being paid directly by platforms. Meta, TikTok, Snap, & X have programs that pay people based on engagement.
My latest piece shows how to identify monetized accounts:
My latest piece shows how to identify monetized accounts:
How to tell if a social media account is monetized
Platforms are paying billions to creators
indicator.media
October 7, 2025 at 5:08 PM
There are lots of ways to make money on social networks, but creators are increasingly being paid directly by platforms. Meta, TikTok, Snap, & X have programs that pay people based on engagement.
My latest piece shows how to identify monetized accounts:
My latest piece shows how to identify monetized accounts:
A few months ago, I approached CBC News with a pitch about crypto ATMs, which are a preferred way for fraudsters to extract money from victims. Canada has the most crypto kiosks per capita, but it lags on regulation.
Our first story, with more to come: www.cbc.ca/news/cana...
Our first story, with more to come: www.cbc.ca/news/cana...
October 6, 2025 at 4:11 PM
A few months ago, I approached CBC News with a pitch about crypto ATMs, which are a preferred way for fraudsters to extract money from victims. Canada has the most crypto kiosks per capita, but it lags on regulation.
Our first story, with more to come: www.cbc.ca/news/cana...
Our first story, with more to come: www.cbc.ca/news/cana...
Meta set off a bit of a panic in the OSINT community a few weeks ago by removing the “Posts” filter from Facebook native search.
I contacted the company and got the lowdown on what happened. It's in today's free Indicator Briefing (plus lots more info!):
I contacted the company and got the lowdown on what happened. It's in today's free Indicator Briefing (plus lots more info!):
Briefing: Sloppy Sora surges on the charts
Plus: changes to Facebook search that you need to know about
indicator.media
October 3, 2025 at 2:45 PM
Meta set off a bit of a panic in the OSINT community a few weeks ago by removing the “Posts” filter from Facebook native search.
I contacted the company and got the lowdown on what happened. It's in today's free Indicator Briefing (plus lots more info!):
I contacted the company and got the lowdown on what happened. It's in today's free Indicator Briefing (plus lots more info!):