Disinformation on social media is appalling and dangerous

The coronavirus is scary, infecting tens of thousands of people. What is equally appalling and dangerous, if not more so, is the deluge of falsehoods, or “infodemic’’, about COVID-19 spreading like wildfire on social media platforms.

There are loud criticisms globally against the misinformation and disinformation circulating on various social media tools, and the effect this has on the public.

Some fake information is benign but wrong, such as the claim “the novel coronavirus is heat-resistant’’. Studies later exposed this myth, arguing that such a claim is groundless. This will not result in serious consequences — people who believe it may merely resort to more sun-bathing and might get burnt or excessively tanned. But it is misleading — feeding public anxiety.

Some claims of quack remedies are easy to expose, for example, “drinking bleach cures the virus’’.

Some information is harmful, inciting a cascade of extreme reactions from the public. There are messages, either in text or audio forms, peddling warnings of city or countrywide lockdowns or full quarantines, while encouraging people to stock up on food and other necessities. The origin of such messages is untraceable and those responsible may be well-intentioned. However, the impact this has on social stability and economies is no laughing matter. The prospect of having to stay at home, and not having enough food, forces some people to panic buy. Toilet paper, protective masks and instant food flew off the shelves — a doomsday scenario then developed in many parts of the world. Prices of these goods were driven up, aggravating the economic fallout and the “gloom and doom” mentality shrouding society.

Some people camouflage their fabricated information by stating things like “from a friend of a friend … of mine, who is a doctor working on the front line…’’. The alleged source of the information, which sounds reliable, persuades more people to buy into this so-called “insider knowledge”.

What drives this fake news frenzy? Firstly, it is profit-driven. Clicks generate profits. More views could mean more money for fake message peddlers.

Political conspiracies and anti-social intentions also play a large part in our post-truth era, when people are more likely to accept an argument based on their emotions and beliefs, rather than one based on facts. This term entered the common lexicon in 2016. Rumors have overwhelmed social media platforms, making varied but unverified assumptions about of the coronavirus.

They are retweeted, reposted or forwarded millions, even billions, of times. But we may notice that people tend to share select messages that match their own beliefs or political views. This is an in-built instinct that informs us to always seek for echo chambers to reinforce our own stance.

That is one of the side effects of social media — helping to polarize the opinions and divide society further.

Governments, international organizations and some social networking service providers are taking the lead in developing measures to counter the prevalence of fake news.

The WHO has set up a “Myth busters” page to specifically correct misinformation circulating online and offer legitimate advice to the public.

The Facebook-owned WhatsApp platform introduced a new measure, which only allows a message to be forwarded a maximum of five times. This will effectively contain the reach of false information.

Facebook co-founder Mark Zuckerberg said, ‘’Even in the most free expression-friendly jurisdictions like the US, you’ve long had the precedent that you don’t let people yell ‘fire’ in a crowded room, and I think that’s similar to people spreading dangerous misinformation in a situation like this.’’

Every social media user is free to speak, post and share, but only under the unwritten premise that the content we post will bring no harm to others and to society as a whole. We must be responsible for every single word we utter online. Also, as news consumers, we need to take a lot of information with a grain of salt until it is officially confirmed or personally verified.