Thread by @LekhakAnurag

#MetaVsTheWire Saga

A #thread to explain what happened since October 6 between @Meta and #TheWire. The aim here is to keep it as simple as possible. This thread is more about the facts and not about taking sides.
#NoTechnicalJargon

Reports from @OpIndia_com are embedded.

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On October 6, The Wire published a report suggesting Instagram removed a satirical post on UP CM #YogiAdityanath. The post was published by Instagram handle @/cringearchivist. It is active on Twitter as well. Cringearchivist blamed 'faulty AI' for the removal of the post.

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The image was reported as a violation of Instagram guidelines against nudity. The story would have died with the report but The Wire claims that they went ahead and investigated to find out the reason behind the removal of the post.

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It is notable that the story was possible only because Cringearchivist had approached The Wire informing them the post was removed. In their mail to Wire's Jahnavi Sen, they blamed Meta's AI for wrongfully flagging the post.

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Now, keep in mind that Cringearchivist is a private account on Instagram. The Wire would not have known about the removal unless someone from the portal followed them.
After the first report got published, Sen again contacted Cringearchivist.

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Sen claimed during the investigation, The Wire found that Cringearchivist's post was removed after BJP's IT Cell Chief #AmitMalviya reported it. She requested them not to share the information with anyone before the second part of the report gets published.

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On October 10, The Wire published a report with the title 'If BJP's Amit Malviya Reports Your Post, Instagram Will Take it Down – No Questions Asked'. In the report, The Wire claimed seven posts of Cringearchivist were removed without verification as Malviya reported them.

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They also claimed that Malviya reported over 700 posts, and all of them were removed, no questions asked. They further claimed it was possible only because Malviya was one of the "privileged" users of Meta's platforms that come under the X-Check program.

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According to a Wall Street Journal report from 2021, X-Check whitelists some 'privileged' users and allegedly allow them to post content that generally goes against the company's policies.

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The Wire claimed, there were supposedly additional features to X-Check that gives powers to those users to get content from other users removed surpassing any possibility of reviews.

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Soon after the allegations were raised, Meta's Communication head @andymstone stepped in and said the claims were false. He said, " X-check has nothing to do with the ability to report posts."

https://twitter.com/andymstone/status/1579644792077946882?s=20&t=jASm4o-WltXLaqpK-0CtpA

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The Wire claimed they sent an email to Andy which was not answered and also claimed that Andy sent an angry email to its colleagues questioning how information about privileges to X-Check users got leaked and asked to put its editor-in-chief and Sen were put on "Watchlist".

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Meta denied the claims and said the email conversation never happened. Even experts did not believe the email screenshots The Wire presented.

Meta’s Chief Information Security Officer @guyro stepped in and narrated Meta's version of the story.

https://twitter.com/guyro/status/1579835592355237889

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Meta also released an official statement on the matter that can be seen here. about.fb.com/news/2022/10/w…

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Can AI mark that particular "meme" on CM Yogi Adityanath under "nudity". The answer is yes. @techtradeguru explained it in the thread. He tested the image on multiple platforms and found out it was marked as a "possible exposed subject".

https://twitter.com/techtradeguru/status/1581329080070250497?s=20&t=4bBGbsOqY0dNJtHR0YsQBQ

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@techtradeguru I also checked the images but I used three different images from different sources and used Google Cloud Vision API. Out of three, two were marked as possible "exposed".

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@techtradeguru Several experts also questioned the language in the email The Wire claimed Andy Stone sent. One of Andy's former colleagues came forward and said it was not how Andy would have conversations.
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https://twitter.com/Kimmelpalooza/status/1581470740595249152?s=20&t=2D38wMc_ryB3RVZY2N56uA

@techtradeguru The Wire shared screenshots of emails from "experts" who authenticated Andy's email. However, there was a problem with the dates in the screenshots. When people pointed it out, they allegedly photoshopped it. Here is a GIF of the screenshots to understand the difference.

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The Wire said they used a system called 'Superhuman' to trace if Andy opened the email. Scripts like Superhuman injects 1x1 pixel external image in the email and when someone opens the email it sends a notification to the sender. It is not fool-proof.

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Also, it is unethical and dangerous to privacy. Experts are not in favour of using such scripts.

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https://twitter.com/olemoudi/status/1581299547518951424?s=20&t=Bq43RmH5k935Yv5_jRCnZA

I am not going into DMIK thing. It will make the thread complicated. If you want to read about it, check @pranesh's thread. One more expert @alexstamos's thread is embedded in my report.

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https://twitter.com/pranesh/status/1581329110085009409?s=20&t=B_L-mvxPnLUBQdm8VExKVw

DMIK basically helps in authenticating the source of the email and if it was altered during transit. Experts said it proves nothing and does not provide any strong base for The Wire's story.

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The Wire claimed two experts authenticated the email. One of the experts, Ujjwal Kumar, allowed them to show his name but later it was retracted. Kumar works for Microsoft. Facebook uses Microsoft Exchange for emails.

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On October 16, Meta further debunked claims of The Wire and said that the video The Wire presented as evidence was a spoof and created using a demo account. The said account was blocked by Meta and an investigation was initiated.

https://twitter.com/guyro/status/1581686693073063936?s=20&t=jNv9BngbUTutmnmEHbvGsg

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The Wire also claimed there were NO abrupt breaks in the video. That claim was debunked by
@pranesh

https://twitter.com/pranesh/status/1581688078158401536?s=20&t=S-hpknfH0JIKWub-Jv0iOw

On October 17, The Wire claimed they are not ‘ready to play this game further’. The Wire also revealed how one of their reporters working on this story had a personal relationship with the Meta ‘insider’. Later they removed the "personal relationship" from the statement.

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So far, this is what has happened in the story. You can read the detailed version here. I am not closing the thread. If anything comes up, I will add it here. Please feel free to ask questions in the comments. I will try to answer in my best capacity.
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opindia.com/2022/10/meta-t…

Here is a list of @OpIndia_com reports on the matter from the beginning.

1. Meta official says documents fabricated: Here is how propaganda outlet The Wire cooked up bizarre story to target BJP
opindia.com/2022/10/the-wi…

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2. The Wire’s ’email leak’ to explain their first fabricated story against Amit Malviya also turns out to be fabricated: What Meta’s CISO said
opindia.com/2022/10/the-wi…

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3. TMC’s Derek O’Brien steps in to give legitimacy to The Wire’s Meta joke that turned out to be a hoax
opindia.com/2022/10/derek-…

4. Meta vs The Wire – Not even the liberal cabal trusts the propaganda website, speculations, concerns and more
opindia.com/2022/10/the-wi…

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5. The Wire claims Microsoft employee based out of Singapore ‘certified’ the fabricated documents in the Meta controversy
opindia.com/2022/10/the-wi…

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6. The Wire ties itself in knots as tech experts call out their photoshopped screenshots of ’emails’ to target Meta and BJP
opindia.com/2022/10/the-wi…

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7. The Wire claims email account of their ‘tech expert’ working on Meta story is hacked, gets mocked by netizens for their tech expertise
opindia.com/2022/10/the-wi…

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8. The Wire now claims its secure encrypted email account was hacked by hacking of MacBook, netizens continue to disbelieve
opindia.com/2022/10/the-wi…
9. Meta says ‘evidence’ provided by The Wire is manufactured, spoof video used to ‘prove’ their theory
opindia.com/2022/10/meta-w…
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10. The Wire reveals one of their reporters had personal relationship with Meta ‘insider’ over hoax story regarding Amit Malviya and his superpowers
opindia.com/2022/10/the-wi…

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11. ‘Satire’ account The Wire based its story on, now claims they did not blame Malviya, throws The Wire reporter under the bus
opindia.com/2022/10/accoun…

12. The Wire vs Meta – All you need to know about the controversy
opindia.com/2022/10/meta-t…

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Updates as on October 18, 2022

The ‘Independent expert’ said they never sent the mail The Wire claims to have received and published as evidence. It was first made public by Pranesh.
Our report: opindia.com/2022/10/the-wi…

What Pranesh wrote:

https://twitter.com/pranesh/status/1582185084157059072

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"Journalism means never having to say you’re sorry – What has The Wire ended up proving about left-wing journalism" an excellent piece by our editor at @OpIndia_com @nirwamehta

opindia.com/2022/10/the-wi…

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In the evening, the Independent researcher took on Twitter and confirmed that he never verified the email(s) for The Wire.

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The Wire said it was "setting up an internal review of all documents, information, source material and sources used for these stories."
The primary reporter of the story deactivated his Twitter account.

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opindia.com/2022/10/meta-t…

This is what the expert, @Kani5hk said. He has denied any involvement in the "verification process". He also denied ownership of the email shared by The Wire with Pranesh. Kanishk said Pranesh approached him to verify if he authenticated the emails.

https://twitter.com/Kani5hk/status/1582380474198261761

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@Meta @OpIndia_com Thank you all for the encouragement. Help us continue our crusade by contributing to this cause.

UPI: opindia@kotak
opindia.com/support/