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Uttar Pradesh Police on Saturday (December 21, 2024) announced its plans to enlist social media influencers and college students as “digital warriors” to combat the circulation of fake news and strengthen the fight against cybercrimes. Director General of Police (DGP) Prashant Kumar, highlighting details about the initiative, said that the digital warriors will raise awareness about misleading news, train ordinary citizens against cybercrimes and publicise the campaigns of police.
The DGP cited a successful pilot project run ahead of Maha Kumbh Mela against fake news involving influencers and college students.
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“U.P. police launched ‘Digital Warriors’ initiative in 2018, which became active on WhatsApp. People from different sections of society were added as digital volunteers. In 2023, WhatsApp Groups were created enabling the state police to refute fake news and highlight the commendable work of the police. But there is a need to indulge young college students and social media influencers with the U.P. Police by making them digital warriors,” the DGP added in a statement.
The initiative will focus on training college and university students through workshops on the need to verify information, analyse them and report misleading news to law enforcement agencies. “By training college/university students, we can develop critical thinking skills, enabling them to analyze and verify information. These students will become digital warriors for U.P. Police and help report cybercrime and fake news. They will raise awareness about fake news and cybercrime within their families and social circles,” said the DGP.
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The Uttar Pradesh Police said it plans to establish ‘cyber clubs’ in schools and universities, with a teacher from each institution serving as the nodal officer. “Workshops and creative sessions such as poster-making, slogan/short-story writing, and social media content creation will be conducted through the cyber clubs,” Mr. Kumar added.
Published – December 21, 2024 07:51 pm IST