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1355158

registered interest
date	13/09/2021
answering body	Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
answering dept id	10
answering dept short name	Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
answering dept sort name	Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
hansard heading	Social Media: Disinformation
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what steps the Government is taking to prevent companies and organisations using automated social media accounts to (a) increase follower numbers on social media platforms and (b) spread disinformation online.
tabling member constituency	Brent Central
tabling member printed	Dawn Butler
uin	48164
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 27/09/2021 answer text <p>The government continues to put pressure on companies to respond quickly and effectively to the threat posed by misinformation and disinformation.</p><p> </p><p>Ministers and officials hold regular discussions with major social media companies to understand what is happening on their platforms and the steps that they are taking to address misinformation and disinformation, including where it is spread by fake accounts.</p><p> </p><p>We have seen positive steps by platforms to curtail the spread of harmful and misleading narratives, particularly in relation to COVID-19, although there is clearly more to do. We will continue to engage platforms regarding measures that could be put in place to respond to this evolving challenge, and we will put pressure on these companies to ensure that their policies and enforcement are fit for purpose, whilst still respecting freedom of expression.</p><p> </p><p>The draft Online Safety Bill sets out proposals to impose a new duty of care on tech companies to tackle illegal and harmful content on their services. To fulfil their duty of care, the largest social media companies will need to set out what harmful content is and is not acceptable in their terms of service. They will need to enforce these terms of service consistently, including policies that may relate to fake user accounts. Ofcom will have the power to hold companies to account if what is appearing on their platforms doesn’t match up with the promises made to users.</p><p><strong></strong><br><br></p> answering member constituency Croydon South answering member printed Chris Philp grouped question UIN 48165 question first answered 27/09/2021 08:44:28 answering member 4503 label Biography information for Chris Philp
tabling member	1489 label Biography information for Dawn Butler

1355159

registered interest
date	13/09/2021
answering body	Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
answering dept id	10
answering dept short name	Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
answering dept sort name	Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
hansard heading	Social Media: Disinformation
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what steps the Government is taking to work with social media companies to eliminate automated fake profiles on social media platforms.
tabling member constituency	Brent Central
tabling member printed	Dawn Butler
uin	48165
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 27/09/2021 answer text <p>The government continues to put pressure on companies to respond quickly and effectively to the threat posed by misinformation and disinformation.</p><p> </p><p>Ministers and officials hold regular discussions with major social media companies to understand what is happening on their platforms and the steps that they are taking to address misinformation and disinformation, including where it is spread by fake accounts.</p><p> </p><p>We have seen positive steps by platforms to curtail the spread of harmful and misleading narratives, particularly in relation to COVID-19, although there is clearly more to do. We will continue to engage platforms regarding measures that could be put in place to respond to this evolving challenge, and we will put pressure on these companies to ensure that their policies and enforcement are fit for purpose, whilst still respecting freedom of expression.</p><p> </p><p>The draft Online Safety Bill sets out proposals to impose a new duty of care on tech companies to tackle illegal and harmful content on their services. To fulfil their duty of care, the largest social media companies will need to set out what harmful content is and is not acceptable in their terms of service. They will need to enforce these terms of service consistently, including policies that may relate to fake user accounts. Ofcom will have the power to hold companies to account if what is appearing on their platforms doesn’t match up with the promises made to users.</p><p><strong></strong><br><br></p> answering member constituency Croydon South answering member printed Chris Philp grouped question UIN 48164 question first answered 27/09/2021 08:44:28 answering member 4503 label Biography information for Chris Philp
tabling member	1489 label Biography information for Dawn Butler

1345322

registered interest
date	08/07/2021
answering body	Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
answering dept id	10
answering dept short name	Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
answering dept sort name	Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
hansard heading	Social Media: Disinformation
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what steps his Department is taking with social media companies to tackle fake social media profiles that spread misinformation and are operated from hostile states.
tabling member constituency	Lewisham East
tabling member printed	Janet Daby
uin	29899
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 16/07/2021 answer text <p><strong> </strong></p><p>We take the issue of dis- and misinformation very seriously and DCMS leads work across Government to tackle it. We engage regularly with social media companies to encourage the introduction of systems and processes that promote authoritative sources of information, and to help them identify and take action to remove dis- and misinformation, in line with their terms and conditions.</p><p><strong> </strong></p><p>It is a Government priority to protect the UK against foreign interference. We know that certain states routinely use disinformation as a foreign policy tool and have seen evidence of this happening in other countries. We monitor for disinformation campaigns so that we can be ready to respond to them quickly and effectively. We work closely with international partners to share information to better understand and then develop approaches to counter the threat from disinformation.</p><p><strong> </strong></p><p>The Government is legislating on these issues. The Counter State Threats Bill will provide the Security Services and Law Enforcement Agencies with the tools they need to tackle the evolving threat from hostile activity by states and actors. The legislation will make the UK a harder environment for states to conduct hostile activity in, and increase the cost to them of doing so.</p><p><strong> </strong></p><p>We have also published the draft Online Safety Bill, which will bring in a legal duty of care and give companies clear legal responsibilities to improve user safety. The new laws will have robust and proportionate measures to deal with disinformation that could cause significant physical or psychological harm to an individual, such as anti-vaccination content and falsehoods about COVID-19.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Gosport answering member printed Caroline Dinenage question first answered 16/07/2021 10:51:56 answering member 4008 label Biography information for Dame Caroline Dinenage
tabling member	4698 label Biography information for Janet Daby

1307823

registered interest
date	12/04/2021
answering body	Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
answering dept id	10
answering dept short name	Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
answering dept sort name	Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
hansard heading	Social Media: Disinformation
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what steps he is taking to reduce misinformation on social media.
tabling member constituency	Huddersfield
tabling member printed	Mr Barry Sheerman
uin	178817
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 16/04/2021 answer text <p>The Government takes the issue of disinformation very seriously and DCMS is leading work across Government to tackle it. In response to the harmful disinformation and misinformation relating to Covid-19 we stood up the Cross-Whitehall Counter Disinformation Unit on 5 March 2020, which brings together cross-Government monitoring and analysis capabilities.</p><p> </p><p>We are working with social media platforms to support the introduction of systems and processes that promote authoritative sources of information, and to help them identify and take action to remove misinformation, in line with their terms and conditions.</p><p> </p><p>We have seen positive steps taken by social media platforms to curtail the spread of harmful and misleading narratives related to Covid-19 and promote the Government and NHS messaging on the matter. However, there is clearly more to do, and we will continue to put pressure on platforms to ensure that their policies and enforcement are fit for purpose, whilst still respecting freedom of expression.</p><p> </p><p>The Online Safety Bill will bring in a new legal duty of care on how online companies will work in practice, giving them new responsibilities towards their users. The Bill will tackle dangerous disinformation and misinformation, such as misleading content about coronavirus vaccines, and will help bridge the gap between what companies say they do to address harmful content, and what happens in practice.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Gosport answering member printed Caroline Dinenage question first answered 16/04/2021 13:42:41 answering member 4008 label Biography information for Dame Caroline Dinenage
tabling member	411 label Biography information for Mr Barry Sheerman

1293585

registered interest
date	01/03/2021
answering body	Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
answering dept id	10
answering dept short name	Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
answering dept sort name	Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
hansard heading	Social Media: Disinformation
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, how many pieces of content the Counter Disinformation Cell flagged to social media platforms in 2020; and if he will make a statement.
tabling member constituency	Broxbourne
tabling member printed	Sir Charles Walker
uin	160562
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 04/03/2021 answer text <p>The Government takes the issue of disinformation very seriously. During the COVID-19 pandemic, it has been vitally important that the public has accurate information and DCMS is leading work across Government to tackle disinformation.</p><p><strong> </strong></p><p>The Counter Disinformation Unit brings together cross-Government monitoring and analysis capabilities. The Unit’s primary function is to provide a comprehensive picture of the extent, scope and impact of disinformation and misinformation regarding COVID-19 and to work with partners to ensure appropriate action is taken. It would not be appropriate for the Unit to provide a running commentary on the volume of content flagged with social media platforms.</p><p><strong> </strong></p><p>Throughout the pandemic, we have been working closely with social media platforms to quickly identify and help them respond to potentially harmful content on their platforms, including removing harmful content in line with their terms and conditions, and promoting authoritative sources of information.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Gosport answering member printed Caroline Dinenage grouped question UIN 160563 question first answered 04/03/2021 15:42:38 answering member 4008 label Biography information for Dame Caroline Dinenage
tabling member	1493 label Biography information for Sir Charles Walker

1293586

registered interest
date	01/03/2021
answering body	Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
answering dept id	10
answering dept short name	Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
answering dept sort name	Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
hansard heading	Social Media: Disinformation
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, how many pieces of content his Department's Rapid Response Unit flagged to social media platforms in 2020; and if he will make a statement.
tabling member constituency	Broxbourne
tabling member printed	Sir Charles Walker
uin	160563
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 04/03/2021 answer text <p>The Government takes the issue of disinformation very seriously. During the COVID-19 pandemic, it has been vitally important that the public has accurate information and DCMS is leading work across Government to tackle disinformation.</p><p><strong> </strong></p><p>The Counter Disinformation Unit brings together cross-Government monitoring and analysis capabilities. The Unit’s primary function is to provide a comprehensive picture of the extent, scope and impact of disinformation and misinformation regarding COVID-19 and to work with partners to ensure appropriate action is taken. It would not be appropriate for the Unit to provide a running commentary on the volume of content flagged with social media platforms.</p><p><strong> </strong></p><p>Throughout the pandemic, we have been working closely with social media platforms to quickly identify and help them respond to potentially harmful content on their platforms, including removing harmful content in line with their terms and conditions, and promoting authoritative sources of information.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Gosport answering member printed Caroline Dinenage grouped question UIN 160562 question first answered 04/03/2021 15:42:38 answering member 4008 label Biography information for Dame Caroline Dinenage
tabling member	1493 label Biography information for Sir Charles Walker

1287113

registered interest
date	19/02/2021
answering body	Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
answering dept id	10
answering dept short name	Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
answering dept sort name	Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
hansard heading	Social Media: Disinformation
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to the recent report entitled Industrialized Disinformation: 2020 Global Inventory of Organized Social Media Manipulation, published by the University of Oxford, what plans the Government has to collect data on cyber troop activity in the UK.
tabling member constituency	Midlothian
tabling member printed	Owen Thompson
uin	155208
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 25/02/2021 answer text <p>The Government takes the issue of disinformation and misinformation very seriously. Disinformation and misinformation threaten our democratic freedoms, and can cause harm to individuals and to our society.</p><p> </p><p>We welcome the valuable analysis and insights from academia and other experts who have a huge amount of expertise in this space. We take their findings and recommendations very seriously and engage widely with academia and civil society to ensure we are able to benefit from this work.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Gosport answering member printed Caroline Dinenage question first answered 25/02/2021 11:44:18 answering member 4008 label Biography information for Dame Caroline Dinenage
tabling member	4482 label Biography information for Owen Thompson

1282538

registered interest
date	01/02/2021
answering body	Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
answering dept id	10
answering dept short name	Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
answering dept sort name	Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
hansard heading	Social Media: Disinformation
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to the report entitled Industrialized Disinformation: 2020 Global Inventory of Organized Social Media Manipulation, published by the University of Oxford, what data the Government has collected on cyber troop activity in the UK.
tabling member constituency	Midlothian
tabling member printed	Owen Thompson
uin	146940
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 04/02/2021 answer text <p>The Government takes the issue of disinformation and misinformation very seriously. Disinformation and misinformation threaten our democratic freedoms, and can cause harm to individuals and to our society.</p><p>We welcome the valuable analysis and insights from academia and other experts who have a huge amount of expertise in this space. We take their findings and recommendations very seriously and engage widely with academia and civil society to ensure we are able to benefit from this work.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Gosport answering member printed Caroline Dinenage grouped question UIN 146941 question first answered 04/02/2021 15:12:35 answering member 4008 label Biography information for Dame Caroline Dinenage
tabling member	4482 label Biography information for Owen Thompson

1282539

registered interest
date	01/02/2021
answering body	Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
answering dept id	10
answering dept short name	Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
answering dept sort name	Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
hansard heading	Social Media: Disinformation
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment the Government has made of the implications for its policies of the findings of the report entitled Industrialized Disinformation: 2020 Global Inventory of Organized Social Media Manipulation, published by the University of Oxford.
tabling member constituency	Midlothian
tabling member printed	Owen Thompson
uin	146941
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 04/02/2021 answer text <p>The Government takes the issue of disinformation and misinformation very seriously. Disinformation and misinformation threaten our democratic freedoms, and can cause harm to individuals and to our society.</p><p>We welcome the valuable analysis and insights from academia and other experts who have a huge amount of expertise in this space. We take their findings and recommendations very seriously and engage widely with academia and civil society to ensure we are able to benefit from this work.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Gosport answering member printed Caroline Dinenage grouped question UIN 146940 question first answered 04/02/2021 15:12:35 answering member 4008 label Biography information for Dame Caroline Dinenage
tabling member	4482 label Biography information for Owen Thompson

1282542

registered interest
date	01/02/2021
answering body	Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
answering dept id	10
answering dept short name	Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
answering dept sort name	Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
hansard heading	Social Media: Disinformation
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what steps the Government is taking to (a) ensure free and fair elections and (b) ensure public trust in elections in response to the findings on threats to democracy in the report, Industrialized Disinformation: 2020 Global Inventory of Organized Social Media Manipulation, published by the University of Oxford.
tabling member constituency	Midlothian
tabling member printed	Owen Thompson
uin	146944
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 05/02/2021 answer text <p>The Government takes the issues of disinformation, online manipulation and abuse very seriously and remains committed to strengthening the integrity of our electoral system and giving the public confidence that our elections are modern, fair and secure.</p><p>The Defending Democracy programme is working to ensure a joined-up cross-Government approach to safeguarding UK democracy. The programme’s objectives are to protect democratic processes; strengthen the integrity of elections; encourage respect for open and safe democratic participation; and promote open, fact-based discourse.</p><p>The Government is committed to ensuring that democratic events are delivered safely and securely. During major democratic events the Government stands up an Election Cell. This is a coordination structure that works with stakeholders to identify and respond to emerging issues.</p><p>Online abuse of any kind is unacceptable.To ensure the law is fit for purpose to tackle abuses online, we have asked the Law Commission to review our laws on harmful and abusive online communications and highlight any gaps in the criminal law that cause problems in tackling this abuse. The Law Commission has consulted on provisional reforms and will issue final recommendations by summer 2021, which the government will carefully consider.</p><p>In addition, the Government has established a dedicated Counter Disinformation Unit. The Unit stands up during periods of heightened vulnerability such as democratic events, and supports the Election Cell by providing a picture of the extent, scope and the reach disinformation and working with partners to identify and respond to it in line with platform terms and conditions. The Unit was previously stood up during the European Parliamentary Election and UK General Election in 2019. It stood up in March 2020 in support of the response to the COVID-19 pandemic and remains operational.</p><p>The Government is also preparing legislation to address some of these issues. Last year we published the Full Government Response to the Online Harms White Paper consultation, which sets out the new expectations on companies to keep their users safe online.</p><p>The Online Safety Bill will establish a new duty of care on companies towards their users, overseen by an independent regulator. Under the new framework, companies will be held to account for tackling illegal activity and content, such as illegal online abuse and illegal hate crime. Some companies will also need to address legal but harmful content for adults, including some forms of online abuse.</p><p>We are also developing a package of electoral integrity measures which we will bring forward when Parliamentary time allows.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Gosport answering member printed Caroline Dinenage grouped question UIN 146942 146943 question first answered 05/02/2021 15:59:59 answering member 4008 label Biography information for Dame Caroline Dinenage
tabling member	4482 label Biography information for Owen Thompson