US elections: Google & Twitter to block voting misinformation

Google and Twitter have announced that they are putting an end to the spread of misinformation online ahead of the US elections. The platforms expect that false posts may spread online before the US election 2020.

Twitter has planned to label and election-related tweets that are not correct and misleading. Tweets claiming victory before election results are likely to be blocked. Incorrect posts about ballot tampering will also be blocked.

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On the other hand, tech giant Google said that it would screen more auto-complete results to avoid voters being misled, particularly over reports claiming an early victory. It also announced that false information regarding election results would not show up in searches.

According to international sources, there are concerns that the widespread use of mail ballots in the US election 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic could postpone tallying results. Experts say that this situation can allow misinformation to gain attention easily.

Social media companies have been under pressure to deal with misinformation as the US intelligence agencies determined Russia used their platforms to meddle in the 2016 presidential election.

“We will not permit our service to be abused around civic processes, most important elections,” Twitter wrote in its blog. “Any attempt to do so – both foreign and domestic – will be met with strict enforcement of our rules, which are applied equally and judiciously for everyone.”