Twitter previously developed a system to label tweets such as deepfake.
Twitter will add warning messages and labels to tweets propagating misleading or disputed information about the novel coronavirus. A click on these labels will redirect users to resources, either external or curated by twitter, to provide context and additional information on the subject.
As per the screenshots from Twitter, any tweet that shares potentially harmful and/or misleading information will have a circled exclamation mark with a link reading, “Get the facts about COVID-19.”
Any information that may have a “propensity for harm,” such as a tweet that contradicts that advice from the public health experts, will be labeled with a warning message and not just the informational link.
The warning message will read, “Some or all of the content shared in this Tweet conflicts with guidance from public health experts regarding COVID-19. Learn more.” While the tweet will be covered with the warning, it can still be viewed using the “view” button placed next to the warning message.
Twitter previously developed a system to label tweets such as deepfake videos that contain synthetic and manipulated media. The company also added the definition of misleading content about health information, which contradicts the information from the accredited sources.
Twitter can remove content it deems as a risk to the health and wellbeing of people. Information that may have violated COVID-19 guidelines can also be removed. The company expects that the labeling system will evolve in the future.
The new mechanism hasn’t been entirely effective thus far. Some videos carrying contradictory information have been spread online in the last few days. One such video that was shared on the social media was from a former researcher turned author and a known conspiracy theorist.
Twitter plans to review the content and label links pointing to the full video, if necessary. The links, however, will not be removed since many people sharing these links are refuting the claims made in the video.