Influencer's 'pretty crazy' bionic hand can crawl on its own
Nineteen-year-old Instagram influencer Tilly Lockey has been at the forefront of prosthetic innovation with UK-based robotics company Open Bionics for nearly a decade. Now, she's the proud owner of their latest bionic arms - this time with hands that can operate when detached from the wearer's body. Alice Rizzo reports.
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The Guardian
6 hours ago
- The Guardian
More than half of top 100 mental health TikToks contain misinformation, study finds
More than half of all the top trending videos offering mental health advice on TikTok contain misinformation, a Guardian investigation has found. People are increasingly turning to social media for mental health support, yet research has revealed that many influencers are peddling misinformation, including misused therapeutic language, 'quick fix' solutions and false claims. Those seeking help are confronted with dubious advice, such as eating an orange in the shower to reduce anxiety; the promotion of supplements with a limited evidence base for alleviating anxiety, such as saffron, magnesium glycinate and holy basil; methods to heal trauma within an hour; and guidance presenting normal emotional experiences as a sign of borderline personality disorder or abuse. MPs and experts said the findings that social media platforms were riddled with unhelpful, harmful and sometimes dangerous mental health advice were 'damning' and 'concerning', and urged the government to strengthen regulation to protect the public from the spread of misinformation. The Guardian took the top 100 videos posted under the #mentalhealthtips hashtag on TikTok and shared them with psychologists, psychiatrists and academic experts, who took a view on whether the posts contained misinformation. The experts established that 52 out of 100 videos offering advice on dealing with trauma, neurodivergence, anxiety, depression and severe mental illness contained some misinformation, and that many others were vague or unhelpful. David Okai, a consultant neuropsychiatrist and researcher in psychological medicine at King's College London who reviewed the anxiety- and depression-related videos, said some posts misused therapeutic language, for example using wellbeing, anxiety and mental disorder interchangeably, 'which can lead to confusion about what mental illness actually entails', he said. Many videos offered general advice based on narrow personal experience and anecdotal evidence, which 'may not be universally applicable', he added. The posts reflected how 'short-form, attention-grabbing soundbites can sometimes overshadow the more nuanced realities of qualified therapeutic work' on social media. The videos also over-emphasised therapy. 'While there is strong evidence supporting the effectiveness of therapy, it's important to emphasise that it's not magic, a quick fix or a one-size-fits-all solution,' he said. Dan Poulter, a former health minister and NHS psychiatrist who reviewed the videos about severe mental illness, said some of them 'pathologise everyday experiences and emotions, suggesting that they equate to a diagnosis of serious mental illness'. 'This is providing misinformation to impressionable people and can also trivialise the life experiences of people living with serious mental illnesses.' Amber Johnston, a British Psychological Society-accredited psychologist who reviewed the trauma videos, said that while most videos contained a nugget of truth, they tended to over-generalise while minimising the complexity of post-traumatic stress disorder or trauma symptoms. 'Each video is guilty of suggesting that everyone has the same experience of PTSD with similar symptoms that can easily be explained in a 30-second reel. The truth is that PTSD and trauma symptoms are highly individual experiences that cannot be compared across people and require a trained and accredited clinician to help a person understand the individual nature of their distress,' she said. 'TikTok is spreading misinformation by suggesting that there are secret universal tips and truths that may actually make a viewer feel even worse, like a failure, when these tips don't simply cure.' TikTok said videos were taken down if they discouraged people from seeking medical support or promoted dangerous treatments. When people in the UK search for terms linked to mental health conditions, such as depression, anxiety, autism or post-traumatic stress disorder, they are also directed to NHS information. Chi Onwurah, a Labour MP, said the technology committee she chaired was investigating misinformation on social media. 'Significant concerns' had been raised in the inquiry about the effectiveness of the Online Safety Act in 'tackling false and/or harmful content online, and the algorithms that recommend it', she said. 'Content recommender systems used by platforms like TikTok have been found to amplify potentially harmful misinformation, like this misleading or false mental health advice,' she added. 'There's clearly an urgent need to address shortcomings in the OSA to make sure it can protect the public's online safety and their health.' The Liberal Democrat MP Victoria Collins agreed the findings were 'damning', and urged the government to act to keep people safe from 'harmful misinformation'. Paulette Hamilton, the Labour MP who chairs the health and social care select committee, said mental health misinformation on social media was 'concerning' . 'These 'tips' on social media should not be relied upon in place of professional, suitably qualified support,' she said. Prof Bernadka Dubicka, the online safety lead for the Royal College of Psychiatrists, said that although social media could increase awareness, it was important that people were able to access up-to-date, evidence-based health information from trusted sources. Mental illness could only be diagnosed through a 'comprehensive assessment from a qualified mental health professional', she added. A TikTok spokesperson said: 'TikTok is a place where millions of people express themselves, come to share their authentic mental health journeys, and find a supportive community. There are clear limitations to the methodology of this study, which opposes this free expression and suggests that people should not be allowed to share their own stories. 'We proactively work with health experts at the World Health Organization and NHS to promote reliable information on our platform and remove 98% of harmful misinformation before it's reported to us.' A government spokesperson said ministers were 'taking action to reduce the impact of harmful mis- and disinformation content online' through the Online Safety Act, which requires platforms to tackle such material if it was illegal or harmful to children. In the UK, the charity Mind is available on 0300 123 3393 and Childline on 0800 1111. In the US, call or text Mental Health America at 988 or chat In Australia, support is available at Beyond Blue on 1300 22 4636, Lifeline on 13 11 14, and at MensLine on 1300 789 978
Daily Mail
8 hours ago
- Daily Mail
Cyber security experts reveal the chilling number of images predators need to make deepfakes of children
Cybersecurity experts have revealed that predators need just 20 images to create deepfake videos of children, prompting urgent warnings over the growing dangers of sharing family photos online. Professor Carsten Maple, a leading expert from the University of Warwick and the Alan Turing Institute, said advanced AI tools can use a shockingly small number of pictures to generate realistic fake profiles and videos of minors. The consequences, he warned, can include identity theft, blackmail, and online exploitation. Parents are unknowingly giving criminals exactly what they need, with many doing it simply by uploading family pictures to social media and cloud storage platforms. 'It takes just 20 images for sophisticated AI tools to create a realistic profile of someone, or even a 30-second video,' said Professor Maple. New research commissioned by privacy tech firm Proton found that UK parents share an average of 63 photos each month, most of them including children. One in five parents post family pictures multiple times a week. Two in five do so several times a month. The findings suggest today's children often have a digital footprint from birth, long before they understand the internet, or can give consent. But it's not just criminals that experts are worried about. Big tech firms are also harvesting these images for their own purposes. Professor Maple pointed to Instagram's recent policy change, which allows the platform to use user photos to train its AI systems. He called the move 'deeply concerning.' He said: 'These companies use consumer data to build advertising profiles, analyse trends, train algorithms and track behaviour — often without people fully realising what's being collected.' Over half of parents now automatically back up their family images to cloud storage. The average parent has around 185 photos of their child saved online at any given time. Yet almost half admit they didn't know that tech companies can access and analyse those photos. The study found four in ten parents believe tech firms only gather basic metadata, things like time, location, or device used, while 11 percent had no idea what kind of information is being collected at all. Experts now warn that a generation of children could face serious long-term risks — including fraud, grooming, and deepfake abuse, simply because of the volume of images being shared. 'Oversharing can lead to digital records that are difficult or impossible to delete,' said Professor Maple. 'This opens the door not just to identity fraud, but also to more sinister forms of exploitation.' Despite this, many parents remain unaware of how vulnerable their images really are. While 72 per cent say photo privacy is important to them, a staggering 94 per cent believe tech firms should be more transparent about how they use stored data. Parental anxiety appears to be rising, with around 32 per cent of parents saying they are constantly worried about their phone or cloud accounts being hacked. Nearly half say they worry about it from time to time. More than half have already taken extra security steps, using Face ID, PIN codes, limiting app downloads, and keeping devices updated. But Professor Maple says that's not enough. With the rapid growth of AI and rising numbers of data breaches, the need to strengthen protection for children has never been more urgent. 'We are building digital profiles of children without their consent,' he said. 'The risks are real, and the damage, in many cases, irreversible.'
The Sun
10 hours ago
- The Sun
Major UK retailer CANCELS pre-orders for new Nintendo Switch 2 console as angry gamers slam ‘shameful' service
A MAJOR UK retailer has been slammed by gamers after cancelling pre-orders for new Nintendo Switch 2 consoles. Several hopeful gamers have reported receiving out of the blue emails from the retailer cancelling their pre-orders. 3 Game has since confirmed that they have cancelled an unspecified number of Nintendo Switch 2 pre-orders. No reason for the cancelled orders has been given by the retailer leaving hopeful customers in the dark. Game took to social media to offer an apology to disappointed customers following a wave of online anger. Successor to one of the best selling consoles in history the Switch 2 has been hotly anticipated for years. The new model will be released to the public on June 5 with eager gamers pre-ordering the console. Several gamers who placed their pre-order through Game however will be sorely disappointed on release day. Game said in a statement on social media: "We sincerely apologise for the recent cancellation of some Nintendo Switch 2 pre-orders. "We understand how disappointing this is, especially for those who have been eagerly awaiting their order. "We're currently working hard to reinstate as many cancelled orders as possible. "If your order was impacted please know that we are doing everything we can and will be in touch with further updates and next steps." The retailer sent out a slew of emails in recent days to notify hopeful customers of their cancelled orders. A wave of fury against the retailer was launched online as upset gamers flocked to social media to complain. Game went on to say: "Thank you for your patience and understanding while we work to resolve this. We truly appreciate your support." Several retailers have had problems with Switch 2 pre-orders, in the US Walmart, Target and GameStop have all cancelled some pre-orders. Further disappointment was reported when it was revealed that most retailers are no longer able to take on fresh pre-orders so close to launch day. Smyths Toys in has stepped up amid the controversy and said that it will have a "limited" number of consoles ready for sale in store on release day. Customers who have had their pre-orders cancelled were left outraged. One took to social media to say: "This is why I didn't pre-order from GAME. "They have disappointed me countless times over the last 2 years. Smyth's all the way." Game has been contacted for comment. 3
