The Digital Forensic Center is the first of its kind in the wider area of the Western Balkans, with the main goal of reducing the impact of malign information activities on democratic processes and institutions in Montenegro through:
All social and security challenges are strongly felt in a small society as diverse as Montenegrin. Montenegro is proud of its multicultural and multinational diversity. Unfortunately, in the last few years, we have witnessed how this very wealth can be turned into a tool for artificially created divisions, maintaining a constant state of tension in society that ultimately undermines and undermines democratic institutions and progress.
The uncontrolled influence of disinformation and fake news can have significant negative social consequences because it affects the perception of the general social situation and can significantly influence the radicalization of individuals’ opinions and behavior in general and specific social situations.
The targeted spread of disinformation, directly and indirectly, affects all constituents of society, and democratic processes, leading to the spread of hate speech, endangering people’s health, and failure to check the institutions of the system.
At the beginning of the 21st century, conventional, military, or “hard power” gave way to a less violent, unconventional form in such a way that the mass media, social networks, and information became the weapon of choice. Since then, many countries, including those of the Western Balkans, have faced the challenge of how to respond and resist malicious campaigns directed against them.
This database consists of all cases of disinformation, fake news, and misinformation that the Digital Forensic Center team investigated, classified, and exposed. The DFC team focuses on key messages found in the Montenegrin and wider information space, which spread half-truths and altered or completely incorrect information, all aiming to discredit and undermine democratic states and society.
Under this term, DFC Team considers:
a combination of true, semi-truthful and false contents/information
the content is intentionally spread with the purposes of influencing public opinion, causing harm, or for political, personal or financial gain
Under this term, DFC Team considers:
an original article/media report that contains completely inaccurate and not-fact-based information and content
the content is intentionally created and spread with the purposes of influencing public opinion, causing harm, or for political, personal, or financial gain
Under this term, DFC Team considers:
unintentional spreading of false information
this implies that the media outlet was not aware of the inaccuracy of the information
Taking into consideration the definitions above, two things are necessary to expose and explain either disinformation or fake news:
Proof that the claims made are false;
Proof that the falsehood was intentional.
Proving intentional falsehood is more difficult. However, proving intent allows us to better explain disinformation and identify and expose it. For that reason, once we identify factual errors, we ask a number of follow-up questions.
Was the error corrected in a reasonable time frame?
If not, is there any proof that the author knew it was an error?
If not, could the mistake have been avoided by conducting basic research?
Is this a consistent pattern of behavior by the author?
Building a more resilient society through exposing disinformation. We are questioning because it concerns us. DFC increases the resistance of decision-makers, journalists, the civil sector and students to information manipulation. We specialize in strengthening critical thinking through expert analysis and research; education of those who produce and consume media content; training on OSINT methods and media literacy.
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