Commission Fights Spread of Disinformation about COVID-19 Pandemic
4 June 2020
2018-Max_Planck_Herr_Wahl_1355_black white_Zuschnitt.jpg Thomas Wahl

The Commission has undertaken steps to fight disinformation related to the outbreak of COVID-19 . On 30 March 2020, the Commission launched a new website that provides material and information on fact checks. The website also warns citizens about online scams related to products that can allegedly cure or prevent COVID-19 infections. Learners, educators, and teachers are provided with a selection of online resources and tools that they can use during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Furthermore, the Commission is closely cooperating with online platforms. Commission Vice-President for Values and Transparency, Věra Jourová, held conference calls with online platforms such as Google, Facebook, Twitter, Microsoft, Mozilla, and the trade association EDiMA. The platforms informed her of their efforts to promote access to authoritative information and to tackle harmful content as well as misleading/exploitative ads. Jourova noted, however, that there are still gaps in the enforcement policy. She urged the companies to share relevant data with the research and fact-checking community, to work together with authorities in all Member States, and to share samples of removed content.

The European External Action Service also compiles reliable information on fake news and disinformation related to the Corona pandemic at the following website: https://euvsdisinfo.eu/.

News Guide

EU Security Union Corona

Author

2018-Max_Planck_Herr_Wahl_1355_black white_Zuschnitt.jpg
Thomas Wahl

Institution:
Max Planck Institute for the Study of Crime, Security and Law (MPI CSL)

Department:
Public Law Department

Position:
Senior Researcher