Election security official tells forum disinformation poses ‘enormous’ challenge

The scale of the challenge posed by online disinformation is “enormous”, according to the official charged with protecting Ireland’s election integrity. Art O’Leary, chief executive of the newly-established Electoral Commission of Ireland, was speaking at the Government’s Consultative Forum on International Security Policy on the threat posed by disinformation.

Mr O’Leary’s office will face its first major test in combating disinformation during the local and European elections scheduled for next year.

“There is an understanding that in an electoral context this can be very difficult and very challenging, and it is not something we can do by ourselves,” he said. “The scale of the problem is enormous but as time goes on we are becoming more solutions-focused. I have sat in rooms like this for the last two years and listening to people articulating the problem absolutely perfectly.”

Dealing with disinformation is one of the commission’s priorities, he said. Media literacy and calling out false information are key to combating the problem. “We do it in collaboration with media organisations, with social media companies and with members of the public who will identify misinformation as they see it.”

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Mr O’Leary said foreign and domestic threats to the election process have been identified. However, the commission does not care if those spreading disinformation are nation states or “people sitting at home”. Its job is to counter the disinformation and it is a matter for others to identify who is behind it. “In a three-week window we don’t have the luxury of spending time trying to identify actors.”

Countering disinformation during the “white heat” of elections will be done “using every avenue”, including social media and public statements.

Potential disinformation by politicians will be treated the same as that from the general public, he told The Irish Times.

The threat of disinformation was also highlighted by Minister for Communications Eamon Ryan in his address to the forum. He said one of the ways to fight it was through high-quality journalism.

He decried the “absolutely scandalous” controversy regarding RTÉ misreporting the salary of its highest paid presenter Ryan Tubridy but cautioned against “throwing the baby out with the bathwater”. He said high quality journalism such as that produced by the national broadcaster “provides a security service” in combating disinformation.

The Green Party leader also voiced strong support for Irish neutrality and non-membership of Nato. However, he said Ireland has to work with friendly countries in countering complex threats such as cyberattacks. The cyber threat was the most significant risk the country faced, Mr Ryan said.

He advocated a change to the triple lock system which states Irish troops can only go overseas with UN security council approval. Mr Ryan said the current system gives other countries a veto over Irish matters and that the requirement for security council approval could be replaced with a requirement for approval from the UN, EU or other regional body.

At the conclusion of his speech he was confronted by his former party colleague and MEP Patricia McKenna, who accused of him “turning your back on peace”.

The forum also heard of the need for increased force protection and firepower for Army personnel. Brig Gen Rossa Mulcahy, who is the Defence Forces’ assistant chief-of-staff, said Irish troops were operating in more dangerous environments overseas and required armoured vehicles capable of offering increased protection and mobility.

These requirements were laid down last year in the report of the Commission on the Defence Forces. Noting the attack on the Nordstream pipeline last year, Gen Mulcahy said there was also a requirement for a more balanced naval fleet capable of monitoring what was happening under water.