Detection of Coordination Networks in Social Media during the 2022 Brazilian Elections

• Grant number: 24/17173-0
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Scientific Initiation
• Start date: January 01, 2025
• End date: December 31, 2025
• Field of knowledge: Physical Sciences and Mathematics - Computer Science
• Principal Investigator: Diego Raphael Amancio
• Grantee: Antônio Carlos de Almeida Micheli Neto
• Host Institution: Instituto de Ciências Matemáticas e de Computação (ICMC). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). São Carlos , SP, Brazil

Abstract

Social Media has played a revolutionary role in the ways society communicates today, allowing for easier communication between different groups, better access to information, and giving a voice to segments previously marginalized in political debates. However, the growing presence of malicious activities that undermine the healthy functioning of these networks has become evident. In this context, the coordinated promotion of inorganic content has been increasingly observed, aiming to manipulate the opinions of other users on specific topics. In the electoral scenario, such manipulation is particularly dangerous, as it can translate into misinformation and extremist content, which, when reaching opinion bubbles, are more likely to be accepted. Thus, the present Scientific Initiation Proposal aims to investigate the role of coordinated activities on Twitter during the 2022 Brazilian Presidential Elections. Methods for detecting coordination based on complex network modeling will be used on the content produced about the Elections during the electoral period to detect groups of accounts engaged in suspicious activity by applying clustering algorithms to these networks. Following this, the results will be validated through content analysis produced by these groups and verification of maliciousness or automation.