Skip to main content

WhatsApp forwards with fake news have decreased by 70 percent

Highly forwarded messages on WhatsApp have reduced to 70 percent since the messaging platform introduced a cap on forwarded messages a couple of weeks back, a report by Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) has shown. The report comes as social media platforms such as Facebook and WhatsApp have been trying to curb fake news and misinformation regarding COVID-19. 

The update came on WhatsApp a couple of weeks back where users are not allowed to forward messages to more than one contact. Once a WhatsApp message has previously been forwarded five times or more, the forwarding feature gets restricted. 

“Since putting into place this new limit, globally there has been a 70 per cent reduction in the number of highly forwarded messages sent on WhatsApp. This change is helping keep WhatsApp a place for personal and private conversations.” said a WhatsApp representative

Among other measures, WhatsApp has also partnered with International Fact-Checking Network (IFCN) to help users verify fake news. The popular instant messenger has also shared a list of official numbers that can be contacted on WhatsApp to help verify fake and authentic news. WhatsApp has also recently taken down as many as 2 million accounts exhibiting suspicious behaviour.  

War against fake news

Despite all these efforts, more measures might be needed to stop rumours. Users can make workarounds against such features by making groups or just messaging people separately. 

A case in point is the fake message claiming to be from the WHO that went viral recently stating that the lockdown will be extended until June. Even celebrities such as Amitabh Bachchan have fallen prey to fake news on social media. The Bollywood star was recently trolled for a tweet showing how the entire country was 'lit up' with lamps and candles for the #9pm9minutes drive.



from TechRadar - All the latest technology news https://ift.tt/3aDWWll

Labels

Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Mother's Day 2020 gift ideas: 18 gadgets and gizmos for tech-savvy Aussie mums

Raising a family is not an easy job, and the women who care for us each and every day deserve to be told how special they are each and every day. While we tend to forget to do that, Mother’s Day reminds us we need to celebrate the women in our lives, whether they’re our own mothers or our wives and partners helping us raise the young ones. Mother’s Day 2020 is fast approaching (with under two weeks to go), and there’s a pretty good chance you won’t be able to take her out to her favourite restaurant this year, or even get to a store to shop for something she might like. So we have to get creative, and TechRadar’s Australian team has put together this little list of great tech gift ideas that you can buy online and have delivered in time for May 10. But you will need to get a wriggle on as delivery supply chains are under strain with more people shopping online. Whether she’s a whiz in the kitchen, loves to cosy up with a book or entertain at home, we’ve got a gadget or gizmo that’s s...
Post a Comment
Read more

The future of Magic Leap's promising AR efforts dim after layoffs

The Magic Leap Two is now further away than ever, unfortunately. Today in a blog post the augmented reality pioneer announced major layoffs and has decided to cut up to half of its workforce, according to some reports. The original Magic Leap One was supposed to be one of the first mainstream augmented reality headsets when it launched in 2018, but a high price point and lack of interest from developers left the headset high and dry after launch. According to the blog post, Magic Leap says it will be focusing its efforts on enterprise solutions (a statement HTC has made recently as well) and shift its focus away from consumer technology… at least for the time being.  The company has been open about creating a second headset that would offer improved specs for some time, but how that work will now have to go forward without half of the team , according to some estimates, remains to be seen. Is the window closing on augmented reality?  Although it’s just one company, Magic...
Post a Comment
Read more

Valentine's Day flowers: the best online flower delivery services

February 14 will be here before you know it, and if you, like many others, are searching for that perfect gift, then placing an online order for Valentine's Day flowers is always an easy and romantic option. You can order a beautiful floral arrangement in minutes from a variety of online retailers, including; 1-800-Flowers, Amazon, ProFlowers, Teleflora, and many more. To help you sort through all the Valentine's Day offers, we've rounded up the best online flower delivery services in both the USA and the UK and listed their current promotions. We've also included delivery charges and made sure to mention if you can allocate specific days for delivery. There's a fantastic range of bouquets and gifts available from our selection of florists below, and online delivery from a specialist means you don't have to worry about the usual hassle of buying from a store and getting them home safely. We'll be updating this page as we get closer to the big day so you...
Post a Comment
Read more