RIYADH: A number of studies have indicated that there has been fast growth in the use of various social media platforms in all segments of Saudi society. Of the total number of Internet users in the Kingdom, 51 percent are on Twitter, according to local reports.

Osamah Al-Mahya, who compiled a study on fake accounts and the use of hashtags, said that the making of public opinion through social media accounts has become a concerning phenomenon which nobody can control.

According to international studies, there are 20 million fake Twitter accounts around the world, involving an average payment of $18 for 1,000 fake followers.

The study showed that the dangers of such fake accounts is that the users in a particular country create an issue and try to generate a concerted public opinion. They also spread fake information which uses the data and names of famous personalities, which sometimes harms their reputation.

Osama Al-Mahya said that there was a particular method among the users of fake Twitter accounts. They create a hashtag which is followed, shared and re-tweeted by many. A real Twitter account holder thinks that this was real pubic opinion, but the fact is that the accounts holder is one person, one institution or one organisation expressing their own opinion on a matter.

Sometimes, there may appear to be a balance of opinion on both sides of the subject in question, when actually it is likely that one side may be the real users and the other side of this volume is just a single entity using a number of fake accounts. He said that such accounts were influencing the Saudi culture.