Twitter to warn users of liking misleading tweets

Twitter is to warn users if they are about to like a misleading tweet, in its latest attempt to stem the spread of fake news and disinformation.

The social network has certainly had its work cut out flagging the lies posted by Donald Trump and others around the US election as well as false claims during the COVID pandemic. Earlier this year the social network started displaying labels under posts that contain disputed details.

According to the social network, the warnings showing when people try to quote misleading tweets helped decrease the spread of false information by 29% so the company is hoping to expand on this with the new alert.

Under the new scheme, a message appears urging users: “Help keep Twitter a place for reliable info. Find out more before liking.”

Twitter announced the change via its official Support profile, stating that the aim is to reduce the spread of misinformation about sensitive topics like the COVID-19 situation for example.

The official post shows how the pop-up warning works – users will see a large exclamation mark with a text saying “This is disputed”. A “Find out more” button will link to an explanation of what Twitter calls “credible information”.

The update is rolling out for iOS and the web, while Android users will have to wait a couple more days.

The firm said: “Giving context on why a labelled tweet is misleading under our election, Covid-19, and synthetic and manipulated media rules is vital.

“These prompts helped decrease quote tweets of misleading information by 29 per cent so we’re expanding them to show when you tap to like a labelled tweet.”