67% dos brasileiros NÃO sabem o que são e para que servem os bots nas redes sociais

Avast, the global leader in digital security products, recently released research data addressing Brazilians' opinions on social media bots. According to the survey, only one-third (33.49%) of Brazilians know what bots are and what they are used for. Meanwhile, 36% of respondents said they were unaware of the topic. Finally, it is worth noting that 30.44% said they had heard of these robots but did not exactly know their functions on social networks.

Considered software (robots), bots are used to automate and streamline certain repetitive tasks in the virtual world, such as collecting relevant information on the web through keyword and hashtag searches, with the aim of helping users.

However, bots have also caught the attention of malicious people who may use them improperly, to mine user data on the internet and, in election periods like the one we were recently experiencing, provide false information to try to manipulate people's opinions. To do this, they create automated accounts that mimic human behavior and even make posts, follow other accounts, and interact with real people on social networks.

According to the survey, which was also conducted to ask Brazilians about the veracity of news circulating on social platforms, 75% said they were not sure that the information is actually true.

"With the use of Artificial Intelligence, it has become increasingly difficult to recognize whether a user account is a bot (robot) or a real person. A good tip to prevent malicious bots from infiltrating a user's social network is not to accept friend requests from strangers," highlights Avast.

Source: Our blog Avast