Facebook has used its submission to the Australian Select Committee on Foreign Interference through Social Media to outline the steps it has taken to stop the spread of misinformation, or at least highlight when something might be a bit on the nose.
As the submission[1] [PDF] highlights, pre-pandemic, Facebook was faced with the dilemma of providing people with freedom of speech at the expense of allowing misinformation to spread. This was exemplified when false coronavirus "advice"[2] spread like wildfire.
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"Since the very beginning of the crisis, we have been displaying on Facebook and Instagram prompts to direct users to official sources of information, including from the Australian government and the World Health Organization (WHO)," Facebook wrote.
"These have been seen by every Facebook and Instagram user in Australia multiple times, either in their feeds or when they search for coronavirus-related terms."
While it previously launched its own Coronavirus Information Centre[4] and points users to the WHO or government health sites, Facebook has also started showing messages about COVID-19 misinformation on the News Feed to people who have liked, reacted, or commented on this type of harmful content.
"These messages will connect people to COVID-19 myths debunked by the WHO, including ones we've removed from our platform for leading to imminent physical harm," the social media giant wrote.
Facebook has also made "significant" donations of free advertising credits on its services to the Australian government and state governments.
It's also started rolling out a new notification to give people more context about COVID-19 related links when they are about to share them.
On the topic of vaccines,