Every week, we provide interesting links from around the web that discuss issues regarding the verification processes of content from social media. Here is our list for this week.

 

 

Forensic research by photo ‘fingerprints’

Any photo contains a unique signature in the shape of a so-called JPEG pattern. Izitru is a new online application that checks the signature of the photo with a database of thousands of signatures of devices and can then tell us if the photo is original or has been re-saved. If it has been re-saved it is likely that the photo has been modified. Izitru gives us 5 trust levels to work with. A great tool to start your photo forensics process with. Read more here. Try it yourself here.

Source: PetaPixel

 

Millennials trust UGC 50% more than other media

A study from January 2014 by research company Ipsos shows how the generation that grew up with internet stays informed. Millennials trust UGC as much as professional media. They consider UGC to be more influential & more memorable than traditional media and spent 5 hours a day with UGC. Want more details? Read the full article here.

Source: Mashable

 

Why UGC works in Regional press

Digital publishing director David Higgerson has written a clear statement on why regional press should get going with using UGC in their publications. Not only to become more successful but also in order to respect their audiences and their knowledge. In 5 clearly argumented reasons David guides us through his ideas of making the regional press industry stronger. His main point is that UGC should not be underestimated and is far more as the expected “badly-written tat, blurry cat pictures and superlative PR masquerading as news.” Read the full article here.

Source: David Higgerson

 

 

Verification of location made easy

The new tool Pixifly adds on to Instagram by giving its users access to all public images sorted by location and time. All you have to do is hit ‘my location’ or type in a location and Pixifly shows you all publicly shared images for that location from Instagram.

You can even travel  through time and look at what was posted yesterday evening. Or have a look at what was posted on Feb 20th on the Independence Square in Kiev, Ukraine. In case of verification of UGC it might be the tool that helps us with verification of the location by finding more, independent, evidence of an event. Read more or try it here.

Source: Wired