Social media influencers to be part of UP Police's 'Digital Warriors' initiative to counter fake news

DG of Police, Prashant Kumar, cited a pilot project run by the UP Police ahead of the Maha Kumbh Mela to combat fake news. The successful month-long project, involving influencers and college students, has been expanded statewide.

Lucknow: Uttar Pradesh Police has enlisted social media influencers and college students as "digital warriors" to strengthen its fight against cybercrime and combat fake news, an officer said on Saturday.

"The digital warriors (a network of social media influencers and college students) will raise awareness about cybercrime, counter misleading news, train ordinary citizens as cyber trainers, and publicise the commendable work and campaigns of the police," said Uttar Pradesh’s Director General of Police, Prashant Kumar.

Kumar cited a pilot project run by the UP Police ahead of the Maha Kumbh Mela to combat fake news. This month-long project, which involved influencers and college students, was successful and has now been expanded statewide, he said.

"The Uttar Pradesh Police launched the ‘Digital Warriors’ initiative in 2018, which became active on WhatsApp. People from different sections of society were added as digital volunteers," Kumar explained.

"In 2023, 'WhatsApp Community Groups' were created, adding all UP Police personnel, enabling them to refute fake news and publicise the commendable work of the police." He added that currently, about 10 lakh people are connected as digital volunteers, and around 2 lakh policemen are linked through community groups.

"Owing to the limited access of these digital volunteers to WhatsApp and their limited activity on other social media platforms like Instagram, Twitter (now X), Facebook, YouTube, etc., there was a need to engage the younger generation of social media influencers and college/university students with the UP Police by making them 'digital warriors,'" Kumar said.

Focusing on the benefits of training the younger generation, the UP DGP said, "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 UP Police and help report cybercrime and fake news." He added that these students will also be able to raise awareness about fake news and cybercrime within their families and social circles.

Workshops will be organised in colleges, schools, or collectively at the Police Lines.

The workshops will feature cybercrime experts, fact-checkers, cyber trainers, and district cyber police station cells, who will share technical knowledge and practical experience.

Cyber Clubs will be established 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, Kumar said.