Simply put, misinformation is false or partially incorrect information. However, it is important to note that although the information may be wrong, it is presented with no malicious or specific intent. Example: Article written about health, where the author used inaccurate sources / information unintentionally.
At first glance, disinformation may seem exactly like misinformation. Similar to misinformation, false information is presented. The way in which it is presented, however, is different. Disinformation is deliberately spread to deceive people, often for profit or propaganda. Example: Article written about health, where the author deliberately gives out false information in order to sell his health product.
Both misinformation and disinformation can be problems for social media users, in many different ways. One particularly common one has to do with politics and propaganda. For example, misinformation and disinformation may influence the reader's opinion on the candidate. Example of Misinformation: The author of an article writes about a political candidate's past, using a faulty and inaccurate source. Example of Disinformation: The author of an article writes lies about a political candidates past in a way that portrays the candidate badly, in order to dissuade people from supporting him/her.
There are a few ways in which misinformation / disinformation is spread through social media. Fake social media posts and accounts can be used to help make misinformation viral. Sometimes, AI is involved as people may use bots to create many accounts and spread disinformation. Video and audio are also problems as they cause people to perceive the information as credible.
As mentioned before, people involved in politics may spread disinformation, or propaganda. They may do this for profit, or for reasons related to political power. Misinformation, on the other hand, can be spread by anyone. Although the reason may differ from person to person, it is most likely due to ignorance.
Misinformation and disinformation are directly correlated to fake news. A lot of the disinformation on the internet takes form as fake news. People fall for it because information from a news page or channel seems credible and reliable. In reality, fake news can have all the wrong information and disinformation.