Iowa newspaper website taken over to spread anonymous AI-generated financial clickbait
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A small Iowa newspaper's website was taken over and filled with AI-generated financial clickbait content. The new owners are obscuring their identities and profiting from ads and traffic.
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Networks of sites filled with AI-generated clickbait are popping up by taking over established media brands' web domains and exploiting their reputations.
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The sites use AI to churn out articles and fake images on financial topics to show up in search results and lure clicks from investors. Many have fake journalist bylines and impossibly high article counts.
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The network centered around the ex-Clayton County Register site includes a former Chinese propaganda website and Polish IT company sites. The new owners are anonymous and hard to trace.
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Researchers warn these AI content farms are booming, often anonymously run and could spread misinformation. They want to raise awareness and help shape policy responses.