Trust? Verify! Dealing with Social Media Deception

by Nidhi Rastogi, representative of the Global Cybersecurity Institute (GCI) at the Rochester Institute of Technology

The rapid rise in radical content and mis- or dis-information on social media platforms like TikTok may pose a threat to college students. To address this problem at the Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) and other universities, this project recommends the creation and implementation of a 1-hour workshop for university students. The workshop will serve as an immediate and accessible introduction to the essential skills required to navigate the social media landscape safely and critically. This strategic intervention, if successful, could be applied at other colleges and universities.

This project was completed as part of the 2023 Summer Nonprofit and Public Interest Fellowship, a Hub program to support public interest organizations in achieving policy impact (learn more on the Aspen Tech Policy Hub website). Project author Nidhi Rastogi served as a representative of the Global Cybersecurity Institute (GCI) at the Rochester Institute of Technology, an institute within RIT that educates and trains cybersecurity professionals.