Social media companies including Meta have pulled back on efforts to protect voters from election-meddling lies

Social media feeds are awash with an unprecedented flood of AI-driven disinformation ahead of November’s US midterm elections, according to experts, who warn many posts are likely “slipping through the cracks”.

As tens of millions of Americans prepare to cast their vote, social media companies have scaled back their efforts to protect voters from lies meant to manipulate elections.

Jury had found Meta misled consumers after Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign obtained user data without consent

A judge in New Mexico ordered Meta Platforms to pay $25bn on ⁠Wednesday after a jury found the company had misled consumers in a case arising from allegations that a political consulting firm involved in Donald Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign obtained data from millions of Facebook users ⁠without their consent.

“Facebook’s wrongdoing – ⁠over the course of ​years and systematically broadcast to the public – goes to the heart of Facebook’s core business practices,” Judge Francis Mathew wrote in his order following the verdict.