As the 2024 election approaches, the phenomena of hoaxes, misinformation, identity issues, sentiments towards SARA, as well as hate speech are increasingly appearing on social media and are often a serious concern. The election was also held in a situation where public access to the internet is increasing, which is estimated to have reached 70% at the population level.
The spread of information disturbances targeting candidates and election organizers has begun to be seen, although a clear pattern is not yet visible. The issues used to attack candidates and election organizers also appear to be random. The results of the author’s search on the websites of the Ministry of Communication and Information (Kemenkominfo) and Turnbackhoax.id (2023) show that the presidential candidates have been attacked by information interference.
Minister of Communication and Information, Budi Arie Setiadi, said there had been an almost 10-fold increase in hoax issues compared to last year. In particular, even though it looks fluctuating since July 2023, there has been a significant increase from month to month before. Budi revealed that the spread of hoaxes and disinformation was found in various ways on various social media. Most of the spread of election-related hoaxes was found on the Facebook platform which is owned by Meta Platform . Meanwhile, Budi has proposed a takedown of 454 content to Meta.
Budi said that the hoaxes that were spread did not only target the presidential and vice presidential candidates. However, this also targets the reputation of the KPU and the implementation of the elections to create distrust in the 2024 elections. In the experience of previous elections, the spread of information disturbances was carried out in a well-structured manner involving partisan buzzers and professionally hired cyber armies . Not infrequently, candidates or parties hire the services of expensive professional groups to spread information disruption. In fact, a number of studies show that candidates and parties are suspected of being responsible for and producing the spread of information disruption.
Head of the Cyber Crime Directorate, Bareskrim Polri, Kombes Adi Vivid Agustiadi Bachtiar invited the public to be alert to hoaxes circulating ahead of the upcoming 2024 presidential election. Social Media is a place where Cyber Friends can express or express whatever they want to express. So, you have to be careful.
The way to prevent people from being consumed by fake news and disinformation is to know the valid source of photo or video content. Find out if others are reporting the same news. Don’t just swallow the information circulating via social media, and always try to think critically. Check the sources of writing and publication, by finding out the information obtained by tracing news sources, making sure it comes from credible media.
Recognize the information label. If the content is indicated as hoax content, there is no need to spread the false information. Next, check the facts or sources of content that contains photos or videos. It is possible that the photos or videos posted were deliberately created using AI technology to spread false information.
In Indonesia, misinformation can actually spread more easily among young, educated, middle-income groups and those living in urban areas. The spread of information disturbances in the 2019 Election also made some people distrust the KPU’s vote counting results because they thought the election was fraudulent. In fact, in the trial at the Constitutional Court (MK) there was no convincing evidence that fraud had occurred in the election.
High internet penetration is a challenge in efforts to mitigate and prevent the spread of information disruption. Overcoming information interference in elections must be a joint task for organizers, election participants (candidates and parties), the government, candidate/party supporters, technology platform companies , the public and media companies.
In the 2024 elections, election organizers (KPU, Bawaslu and DKPP) must actively and quickly prepare mitigation plans to stem the spread of misinformation. Prevention can be done in several ways, including first, ensuring transparency and independence in every election process and stage. Starting from registering political parties, updating voter data, determining the Permanent Candidate List (DCT), selecting election organizers at the regional level, voting, and determining election results. If the KPU cannot ensure transparency and independence, this will affect the level of public trust in the election results and trust in the KPU. Moreover, based on a number of surveys, the level of public trust in the KPU is currently below the national average.
Second, ensure that the KPU’s information and technology systems are resilient and can ward off cyber attacks. In the two previous elections, the KPU’s information system was reportedly paralyzed and helpless in the face of cyber attacks. In fact, by displaying information in real time, the potential for fraud can be overcome. It is also important for the KPU to provide access for the public to find out the vote counting results in real time, shortly after the vote counting process at the TPS is completed. For example, by making regulations that require KPPS officers to upload vote counting data to the KPU data center so that the public can see it in real time. This, apart from reducing the potential for fraud, aims to prevent misinformation related to vote counting.
Third, it is important for the KPU to have an early warning system that can measure and monitor the potential for the spread of misinformation, and can prevent it before the misinformation circulates. Fourth, from the Bawaslu side it is necessary to actively monitor and supervise campaign activities, especially on issues that have the potential to become misinformation or misleading. Bawaslu needs to prepare a strategic plan to monitor the spread of misinformation on social media and collaborate with companies providing technology platforms .
The current and future spread of information disruption will pose a threat not only to the implementation of elections, but also affect public trust in government and state institutions, support for democracy, and national cohesiveness. For this reason, it is hoped that the public will increase their insight into the world of politics. Because if all parties understand matters related to elections, it will certainly be a good record for the implementation of the 2024 elections in determining the ideal leader in the future.
