Meta aims to counter misinformation ahead the upcoming PH Elections

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On April 6, Meta Platforms Inc. released an article in regards to the spread of misinformation, harmful networks, and hate speeches alluding to the upcoming Presidential Elections in May 2022.

As the election period once again came around the corner in time of also the COVID-19 pandemic, Facebook has become an open community for people to be vocal about their support and provide insights to their favored presidentiables.

However, alongside that, it also became a platform for people to release malicious sources of information, conduct spammed polls, and hatred towards their supported presidentiables’ fellow candidates, keeping the election disrupted from the truth.

In a newsletter released by Meta Inc., the company stated that “We remove misinformation where it is likely to put people for risk for imminent physical harm.” referring to the countermeasures that the company have implemented.

Every post that are being published online are scrutinized by independent, third-party fact-checking partners in the Philippines, such as: Rappler, Vera Files & AFP around the clock, which will flag notice of warnings to posts that will be deemed to be false or misleading.

Meta also added that if any known groups, pages or profiles even from their cross-platform, Instagram that will repetitively violate the newly, modified community guidelines will be removed from the recommendations and the ability to monetize on the platform.

Lastly, Meta has also implemented a stricter process in terms of submitting advertisement materials and removed multiple clusters of activity from other countries such as Vietnam, Thailand and more countries who uses VPNs, in an attempt to monetize the attention garnered from the upcoming national elections, posing they are based in the Philippines.

The company stated that advertisers in the Philippines are now required to complete their whole ad authorization process, and include the “Paid for by” on ads such as the upcoming elections and certain social issues, as an improved effort to provide transparency on political advertisements.