"Facebook, Google and Twitter will have to provide monthly updates on how they're tackling misinformation connected to COVID-19 under plans to be unveiled in the coming days by the European Commission, according to four officials and outside experts who have reviewed the proposals.
The latest push by Brussels to clamp down on rumors, bogus cures and state-backed disinformation linked to the global public health crisis will be published on Wednesday. It forms part of the Commission's wider efforts — to be published later this year — to overhaul how social media giants monitor and police online content.
As part of Wednesday's proposals, the Commission is expected to call for greater cooperation with international partners, including NATO and the G-7 group of the world's most wealthy nations, on combatting digital misinformation. Officials are also expected to call out both Russia and China for efforts to spread coronavirus disinformation aimed at undermining the West.
"It is high time to step up on this and not to allow others such as China to occupy the space," Věra Jourová, the Commission's vice president for values and transparency, said Thursday during a webinar organized by her political group Renew Europe in reference to ongoing disinformation. "We need to get better at assessing the threats and liaising with partners such as NATO on this.""
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