These ‘bots’ could sway the Brexit vote

Automated social media accounts are being used by both sides in the Brexit debate, a new report shows, with some experts fearing that a sudden surge in activity by the “bots” could influence the referendum vote.

Researchers from Oxford University and Budapest’s Corvinus University have found that bots are playing a “small but strategic role” in the social media conversation around Britain’s referendum on European Union (EU) membership, the report released Monday explained.