https://www.statista.com/chart/31605/rank-of-misinformation-disinformation-among-selected-countries/
Disinformation is defined as situations where the author has purposefully sought to mislead their audience. Misinformation describes information which is spread out of genuine belief, but can be just as harmful - like is sometimes the case with conspiracy theories.
India is the country where the risk of disinformation and misinformation was ranked highest. Fake news had been rife in India’s 2019 election, with Vice reporting how parties had “weaponized the platforms [of Whatsapp and Facebook] to spread incendiary messages to supporters, heightening fears that online anger could spill over into real-world violence.” More recently, misinformation also became an issue during the Covid-19 pandemic in India, again via WhatsApp.
https://www.weforum.org/publications/global-risks-report-2025/
https://reports.weforum.org/docs/WEF_Global_Risks_Report_2025.pdf
Bombay HC rules that amendments to the IT Rules enabling the Fact-Check Unit are unconstitutional https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yNLW323jGsQ The Indian Express Sep 20, 2024
In a major setback for the Central government, the Bombay High Court declared the amended Information Technology (IT) Rules, 2021, unconstitutional. These rules allowed the government to identify "fake news" on social media through a Fact Check Unit (FCU). Justice Atul S Chandurkar agreed with a prior judgment by Justice Gautam S Patel, stating that the rules violated constitutional rights to free speech and equality. The decision struck down the amendments, which had given the FCU powers under the Press Information Bureau to flag false information about the central government on social media platforms.
Ashok Wankhede, Ravish Kumar & Dhruv Rathee : जुबान बंद नहीं होगी! The News Launcher https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9q2pSEAz3h8 The News Launcher Sep 21, 2024
When government tells you what is right and wrong, it is not a democracy: Mishi Choudhary on Fact-Checking Units https://www.barandbench.com/interviews/when-government-tells-you-what-right-wrong-not-a-democracy-mishi-choudhary-interview Choudhary speaks on the impact of FCUs on existing fact-checkers who are not aligned with the government, whether there is scope for collaboration in an era of disinformation, and more.
कोर्ट का ऐतिहासिक फैसला, जज ने Modi की आरती उतार दी ! High Court strikes down IT Rules changes
DESH NEET https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=khlEIrDO4K8
Rumor Scanner revealed that 72% of the accounts spreading fake and misleading information about communal violence in Bangladesh claimed to be based in India, with over 154 million views across 50 accounts. https://thewire.in/communalism/indian-media-fuels-communal-disinformation-about-bangladesh
Rumor Scanner’s Investigation Unit has identified 50 accounts on X that have been actively spreading communal narratives by sharing images, videos, and information related to recent events in Bangladesh.
At least one post from each of these accounts has been found to promote communal misinformation and disinformation, reports Rumor Scanner in a study titled ‘Surge of Communal Misinformation on X During Bangladesh’s Political Crisis’.
by Prothom Alo
19/08/2024