COVID-19 Misinformation Tweets Being Removed By Twitter

While the world grapples with COVID-19, a series of fake news and misinformation on Twitter has led to a furthermore chaotic situation in certain parts of the world. Understanding the gravity of the situation, Twitter has begun to remove such tweets from their platform. Although, the company has made it clear that it cannot take enforcement action on every such tweet.

The company tweeted saying, “As we communicated last week, COVID-19 is affecting our content moderation capacities in unique ways, and we're adjusting to meet the challenge. Right now, we're focused on content that has the highest potential of directly causing physical harm." The company listed a few points and content on a blog post that are being considered as violative and harmful in nature.

Twitter made it clear that any content that goes against the guidelines provided by health authorities such as social distancing not being competent or drinking bleach to cure COVID-19 will be removed as such information may put lives in danger. The list excludes government entities that are engaging in conversations related to COVID-19 such as origins of the virus and potential ways of treating it. 

Twitter further said, “We will keep our enforcement guidance under close review and are consulting with medical professionals on any update we may need to make as things continue to evolve." The social media giant will further increase the use of machine learning and automation to track down tweets that are manipulative.

Twitter joined hands with Facebook, Google, LinkedIn, Microsoft, Reddit, and YouTube last week to curb misinformation on COVID-19. The seven social networking platforms are now closely working together with health agencies to put a halt on such pieces of information. Last but not least the company said, “We're helping millions of people stay connected while also jointly combating fraud and misinformation about the virus, elevating authoritative content on our platforms, and sharing critical updates in coordination with government healthcare agencies.”