2025's Social Media Revolution: Opportunities and Challenges for OSINT

Viltzu - Jan. 15, 2025 - Osint
Tags Social Media,

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As we step into 2025, the social media landscape is brewing and showing changes that might reshape how open-source intelligence (OSINT) is conducted. One of the most notable developments comes from META (the parent company of Facebook, Instagram, and Threads) which recently announced the discontinuation of its fact-checking program. Instead, META plans to adopt a "community notes" approach, similar to what Elon Musk’s X has implemented. While this shift has sparked discussions about decentralising fact-checking, it is also raising concerns about its affect to OSINT.

 

The Rise of “Billionaire-Free” Social Medias

META’s announcement has prompted a wave of users to explore alternative social media platforms like BlueSky, Mastodon, and Pixelfed. These platforms represent decentralised model, where users have more control for their content. These newer social media platforms are getting support from "Free Our Feeds" campaign, which include founder of Wikipedia and president of Mozilla. Free Our Feeds hopes to “save social media from billionaire capture” and raise money and supports for better social media ecosystems, powered by AT Protocol or decentralised networks.  This shift creates new sources in the social media field, but it also introduces new challenges for OSINT investigators.

A fragmented social media landscape means investigators will need to search and monitor a wider array of platforms and sites. Unlike the past, where a few major platforms dominated, the rise of smaller networks requires the development of new tools and workflows. While having multiple sources can enrich investigations, the increased time and effort required to cover this diverse ecosystem could strain resources and slow down operations.

 

The Misinformation Challenge

The move away from centralised fact-checking makes me worry that misinformation and disinformation will start to emerge and spread faster in Facebook and Instagram and these META platforms start to have similar downfall as X, which is plagued by increased amounts hate-speech and misinformation. For OSINT professionals, this trend underscores the growing importance of source criticism and cross-referencing information across multiple platforms. As the lines between truth and falsehood blur further, investigators will need to rely on robust methodologies to verify information and mitigate the risks of being misled by deceptive narratives.

 

The Role of AI in Social Media Content

Adding another layer of complexity is the increasing prevalence of AI-generated content. META experimented with fully AI-controlled users on Facebook and Instagram in late 2024 but rolled back this decision by early 2025. Despite this reversal, AI-generated content is poised to play an even larger role in social media. Reports suggest that over half of LinkedIn posts are already created or enhanced with AI tools, and this trend is likely to expand across platforms.

For OSINT investigators, the rise of AI-driven users and posts presents a double-edged sword. On one hand, AI tools can help sift through vast amounts of data more efficiently. On the other, distinguishing between authentic human-generated content and AI-crafted narratives becomes a daunting task. The potential for entire AI-controlled personas to spread misinformation further complicates efforts to identify and analyse reliable sources.

 

A New Era for OSINT?

The shifting dynamics of social media indicate that OSINT might be entering a transformative phase. The proliferation of platforms and the rise of AI-driven content present undeniable challenges, but they also open doors to innovation and adaptation. To navigate this evolving landscape, OSINT professionals will need to embrace new tools, sharpen their investigative techniques, and foster cross-disciplinary collaboration.

As 2025 unfolds, the complexity of social media will demand greater resilience and creativity from OSINT practitioners. This moment in time offers not just obstacles but an opportunity to redefine the strategies used to uncover, analyse, and interpret information in an increasingly fragmented and AI-driven digital world.



>> This article is written by a human with help of AI



Sources:

https://about.fb.com/news/2025/01/meta-more-speech-fewer-mistakes/
https://freeourfeeds.com/
https://www.theverge.com/2025/1/13/24342799/free-our-feeds-social-media-ecosystem-at-protocol-bluesky
https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2025/jan/03/meta-ai-powered-instagram-facebook-profiles
https://www.wired.com/story/linkedin-ai-generated-influencers/
https://www.ft.com/content/91183cbb-50f9-464a-9d2e-96063825bfcf

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