A s discussed earlier, our brains are always looking for heuristics to understand things like credibility when it comes to information. Heuristics are mental shortcuts and they help us make sense of the world. Seeing a brand that we already know is a very powerful heuristic. It is for this reason that we’re seeing an increase in imposter content — false or misleading content that uses well-known logos or the news from established figures or journalists. I first came across imposter content designed to cause harm when I worked in 2014 for UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency. We were constantly battling Facebook posts where smugglers were creating pages with the UNHCR logo and posting images of beautiful yachts and telling refugees that they should “call this number” to get a place on one of these boats that would take them safely across the Mediterranean. Since then, we continue to see examples of agents of disinformation using the logos of established news brands to peddle false and misleading content. Here are two examples of the BBC being used in this way. One circulated in the lead up to the 2017 UK general election and was posted on social media. The image says that the election is over two days, and depending on your party affiliation, you need to vote on the right day. 34 I N F O R M AT I O N D I S O R D E R An imposter news site used the BBC logo to peddle misleading information about the UK election. Archived on September 6 2019.17 Screenshot by author. IMPOSTER CONTENT 35